


Galia-4

by secooper87



Series: The Child of Balime [63]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Action, Action/Adventure, Adventure, Mystery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-05-31
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:42:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 47
Words: 98,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23625571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/secooper87/pseuds/secooper87
Summary: The Doctor always wondered what happened on Galia-4.  What he finds, when he gets there, is a lovesick Time Agent who can't get anywhere in his investigation, a biologist desperate to cover up ghostly projections that keep wandering the halls, and a mysterious woman named Mutajar who is desperate to find something hidden that could affect the fates of entire races.  Yet even as he runs through world after world, filled with exotic creatures at every turn, answers may ultimately depend on one secretary, her sick husband, her best friend, and an unknown event that happened two months ago.
Series: The Child of Balime [63]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/42591
Comments: 27
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

#  **_Introduction_ **

Not even the cool zephyr wafting through the trees was enough to calm Lantro.

He paced the small clearing in the forest, teeth gritted, hands bunched into fists. A month and a half. Six whole weeks! And nothing. Not a word. And just watching the way Stenman and Hoyer relished it, grinning and laughing at him, counting the number of days. All while he was running around, desperate to get her alone so he could talk to her... explain...!

A hand fell on his shoulder.

Lantro spun around, whipping out his gun. Then scowled, holstering the gun as he saw who it was. “You again.”

“I know you know where it is,” said Faye Mutajar in a low but hard voice. Held out her hand, expectantly. “Give it to me. Now.”

“You’re obsessed, you know that?” Lantro stepped back, hands raised. “Look, I got my own problems. Serious problems.” Turned away. “If you’re so sure this thing exists, go find it yourself. I’m busy.”

She grabbed him by the arm. “Don’t you dare walk away from me! You have no idea who I am!” 

“Nor do I care,” Lantro said, yanking back his arm. “Look, I told you the first time — if you’re so sure this crazy theory of yours is true, prove it. It’s been... how many years, now? And you’ve got nothing. So I _really_ don’t care. Not at all.” He turned away and headed towards the Main Complex, resolving to give it another try... just a few words, a small explanation, that was all he needed...

He barely heard Mutajar behind him, shouting, “There’s a guy out there who _knows_ what I’m saying is true! Someday, he’ll materialize here and prove it. And you’ll lose everything, Lantro. Your job. Your reputation. _Her_.”

Lantro pointedly ignored Mutajar as he walked away. He had more important things on his mind. Much more important things.

He didn’t even notice as, behind him, she rolled up her sleeve and disappeared.

* * *

#  **Chapter 1**

Jenny screamed, as the gigantic dragonfly dive-bombed her. Throwing herself to the ground, she rolled past it and grabbed a nearby rock — then flipped around and chucked it at her attacker. The dragonfly shuddered back, buzzing angrily, then dove towards her again.

The green glow of the sonic appeared suddenly between her and the insect. The dragonfly paused mid-swoop. Hesitated. Then gave up, flying off to look for easier prey.

“Beautiful!” the Doctor admired, twirling his sonic. “Those mandibles. That wingspan. Most gorgeous thing I’ve seen this week!” Turning around, he helped Jenny to her feet. “Carnivorous, though. Probably checking to see if you were friendly, or if you were lunch.” 

The setting sun and gigantic gibbous moon illuminated swarms of giant insects buzzing through the air.

“Not your best choice of planet, Dad,” Jenny grumbled, brushing dead leaves from soggy clothes. “Swamps, giant bugs, 22 hour days...”

“Yes, I know — Seo’s home planet can be a bit rubbish sometimes.” The Doctor grinned, flinging his arms open. “Welcome to Earth!”

Jenny stared. “Earth?”

“Near the equator, edge of the Panthalassic Sea,” the Doctor confirmed, gesturing at the ocean to their right and the gigantic looming mountains to their left. “Appalachia! Coal country, USA.”

A rustle from the dense ferns behind them. They spun round, the Doctor ready with his sonic. Instead, they found a peat bog drenched Seo covered in bits of web, accompanied by a spider the size of a dog. 

“This place is brilliant!” Seo pet the spider on the head. “Charlotte was just showing me around. There are giant scorpions and millipedes the length of cars!”

The Doctor walked forwards to pick some spider web out of her hair. “Friends, now, are we?”

“We did have a bit of a misunderstanding, at first,” Seo admitted. “But then I saved her babies, and — instant mates!” Pointed at the sky. “You know, that moon looks familiar.”

Charlotte crept up closer to Seo, suspiciously eyeing the new two-legged monsters.

“Dad says we’re in America,” Jenny replied, backing away from the giant spider. “I don’t believe it, but...”

Seo’s eyes twinkled. “That’s why the man in the moon’s still there!” She paused. Frowned. “But the moon’s too big. And why no humans or flowers or grass? It’s all just giant...” She gasped, clapping her hands to her mouth. “Oh, God! It’s happened, hasn’t it? We blew ourselves up! The radiation got to the insects and...!”

“No, no, no!” The Doctor waggled his finger at her. “B-movie science isn’t science!” He jumped up and down. “Feel the fast rotation of the planet.” Took in a long, deep breath. “Taste the extra oxygen in the air!” Rapped his knuckle against the trunk of a star-tree. “And don’t drop any pennies, or you’ll get some very confused coal miners in 300 million years.”

“Oh, _pre-human_ Earth!” Seo leapt over and hugged him. “Brilliant!” She cupped her hands over her mouth and gave a squawk she’d learned from Myfanwy back at Torchwood. 

No response. 

Seo frowned. Turned back to the Doctor. “Where are all the dinosaurs?”

The Doctor pointed into the distance. “Hundred fifty million years that-a-way.” Spun around, pointing the other direction. “Or was it that-a-way?” Scratched his head, then started pointing in all directions, one after the other. “Whichever way’s the future.”

A crack of thunder ripped through the air, as a cluster of dark storm clouds slowly rolled over the mountain tops.

“Our cue to leave,” the Doctor declared, raising a finger into the air and marching towards the TARDIS. “Extra oxygen in the Pennsylvanian. Storms. Lightning. Explosive wildfires. Basically, lots of ways to ruin your day.” He paused, then spun back around, glaring at the spider still following Seo. “And no pets!”

Seo pouted. 

“But how can this be Earth?” Jenny asked, peeling layers of dead leaves off her bog-drenched clothes as she rushed after him. “Why are the Appalachians so tall? And next to a sea I’ve never heard of? And why is a day only 22 hours long?”

* * *

Several hours later — and 4.5 billion years earlier — the TARDIS hovered, its doors open, above a young solar system circling a yellow star. Jenny stood in the doorway, transfixed, as two planets collided below her, gravity curving their remains around to crash again. And again. And again.

“And that’s how it starts,” said the Doctor, standing beside Jenny. He pointed to the dust ring thrown up by the initial collision. “Moon, right there. Or will be.”

Seo, sitting on the threshold floor and swinging her feet through the vacuum of space, watched as the collision finally ended, leaving one Earth-sized planet spinning like a top, its surface cooling... and cracking. Into plates.

“The birth of the Earth...” Jenny stared, enraptured by the physics of the thing. “Beautiful.”

“I thought there’d be more spiders.” Seo paused, then leaned forwards. “We’re watching all this in accelerated time, right? Millions of years a second?” Pointed out the doors, at an object to their right. “So why’s that ship moving so slow?”

Jenny and the Doctor leaned forwards, staring at the small patrol ship racing towards them, a blond human woman visible through the windshield.

With a crackle of static, her voice blared across the TARDIS speakers: “You have trespassed on Stenman-Hoyer Co. property. Please present Time Agency credentials, or be prepared for transportation and prosecution.”

The Doctor spun on his heels and leapt back towards the central console. “Prosecution?!” He flipped down two switches. “The cheek!”

Seo leapt to her feet. “Time Agency? The same one Jack was part of?”

The Doctor pulled a lever, and the doors snapped shut behind her. “Two hundred years later, actually. Different Agency. Different purpose. Named after the first one.” He flipped a switch, and a comms device sprung, jack-in-the-box style, out of the console and smacked the Doctor in the face. “Ow.” He rubbed his nose. “Jenny, have you been disassembling and reassembling the console to see how it works again?”

“No!” Jenny put on her most innocent face. As the Doctor’s glare intensified, she cringed. “I... thought it would be funny?”

The Doctor shook his head, then grabbed the receiver. “Hello, Stenman-Hoyer ship! Don’t mind us. Just here for a quick peek.”

The central console started whining. Around them, something whirred and clunked in the walls, and the floor gave a dull moan. The TARDIS monitors began to flicker as they flashed up warning after warning after warning.

Jenny grabbed the console as the ship bucked, her eyes skimming the monitors. “Are they hacking the TARDIS?”

“Impossible!” The Doctor yanked a monitor towards him, flipping some switches. Data flooded the screen. He grimaced. “ _Should be_ impossible.”

Over the loudspeaker, the woman said, “Internal systems scan reveals no Agency ID tags, no.... Oh. That’s weird.”

The Doctor dropped the comms as a fluid link sizzled at the far side of the console. He ran for it, slamming down three levers and pressing a partially melted button. He yelped, shaking out his burned finger.

The central column tried half-heartedly to move... but failed.

“The old girl’s panicking,” the Doctor said, using his jacket to shield his hands from the heat and attacking the console again. “Like she’s seen a ghost.” He shoved the zigzag plotter over one, then braced his foot against the console to yank down a stuck lever. “Jenny — crank the thermo-what’s-it up to 70. Then reconfigure the blue thingummies and multiply each by Avogadro’s number as they switch.”

Jenny darted to the right and began to work at the central console, as the Doctor nudged another lever with his elbow, and pressed a less hot button with his nose.

Seo hopped from foot to foot restlessly. “What should _I_ do?”

“Stand there and don’t blow anything up.” The Doctor finally forced down the lever. He checked the monitor. “How are they doing that?!” He ran to the other side of the console and adjusted two dials, flipping another switch with his chin. “Jenny, that doo-da on the left. Don’t stop with Avogadro’s number!”

The woman’s voice came over the intercom again. “Sir, again, if you’re with the Agency...”

Seo, frustrated, grabbed the comms device. “We’re not with any kind of Time Agency! We just came to see how the Earth was created. That’s not a crime.”

The woman on the intercom laughed. “Earth? You’re on the wrong side of the Milky Way for that.”

Seo and Jenny stared, their jaws dropping.

“Wrong side?!” Seo cried.

“That wasn’t Earth?!” Jenny cried at the same time.

The Doctor lunged towards Seo and grabbed the comms device back.

Beneath them, they heard the TARDIS engines begin to wheeze and groan... but at the wrong pitch, and in a way that made the whole ship shake.

“But thank you for confirming you’re not Time Agents,” said the woman on the intercom. “Here at Stenman-Hoyer Co., we take industrial espionage very seriously. Goodbye.”

The intercom clicked off.

The TARDIS engines raised in pitch again, as the shaking grew more and more violent.

“Seo, what did I just tell you about not blowing things up?” the Doctor shouted, running to the other side of the console, as the monitor flashed: ‘WARNING: Engine Overload’. He slammed down a series of switches.

“We’re blowing up?” Seo cried, yanking the monitor towards her. “But...!”

“Metaphorically.” The Doctor stretched out between the backmost console switches and the front most ones, trying to handle both at once. “Non-metaphorically, they’ve sent our engines into spasm and thrown the ship out of gear, causing deadly radiation to vent into the ship’s interior. So no, not an explosion, but we’ll still be dead in 45 seconds, so I say it counts.”

He raced to a different part of the console, ducked down, and ripped something out from the bottom.

“What are you...?” Jenny began.

“Taking down everything!” The Doctor leapt to his feet, yanked a wire out of the top, making sparks shoot from the console. “Shields, information scramblers, perception filters — every camouflage we have that makes people think this is just a plain-old police box.”

Jenny raced after him. “But the shields are all we have to protect us from...!”

“In thirty seconds, it won’t matter!” The Doctor insisted, as the pitch of the engines went up a tritone. “But since this lot’s so worried about Time Agents...” He slammed down a button, and the lighting in the TARDIS flickered. “...let’s let the Agency know we’re here!”

A bright beam of light suddenly illuminated the area of space around the TARDIS. The engine sounds stopped, as a crack appeared in the universe, and the TARDIS was plucked from its location in space and dragged into the time vortex.

Everyone inside the TARDIS shrieked and grabbed onto the central console, as the ship lurched. Well, everyone except the Doctor, who laughed. “Geronimo!”

* * *

Alarms blared in the 53rd century Time Agency headquarters. The Director of the Time Agency ran into the main operations room, eyes fixed on the team tracing the signal from the Galia-system.

“Well?” the Director barked, storming towards them.

One of the employees seated at a holographic display desk grimaced. “Definitely a Time Lord vehicle, sir. It’s on its way.”

The Director turned on a man wearing a Time Agency uniform, who sported soft brown eyes, chiseled good looks, and an incongruous blue chin. “Agent Lantro...”

“Don’t look at me!” Lantro held up his hands in innocence. “I’ve been keeping a close eye on them. If they’d bought a Time Lord vessel, I’d know.”

The Director glared. “If? _If?!_ ” He gestured at the alarms around them. “Who else would materialize a Time Lord ship in the Galia system?”

Lantro fidgeted. “A... Time Lord?”

The Director stabbed a finger in Lantro’s chest. “Don’t get smart with me. If that company’s got its hands on a Time Lord ship, the press will have a field day. Congress will have a field day.” He stabbed his finger into Lantro’s chest again. “Your incompetence might have just screwed us all over!”

One of the employees took off a headset and swiveled around. “Director, sir — further readings indicate the vessel contains two non-human life forms. Species unknown... but they each have two hearts.”

The Director turned on his heel. “What?” He charged forwards, staring over the employee’s shoulder at the data. “You’re saying these really _are_ Time Lords?”

“Materialization in five seconds, sir,” said the employee. “I guess we’ll find out.”

Time Agents assembled on all sides of the room, ready to run in the moment the ship materialized, force open the doors, and drag the occupants outside.

With a burst of bright light, the universe cracked open in the center of the room and a blue Police Box shot out of it — not static, like they hoped, but racing at 20 mph. It collided with the far wall, then bounced over to the rightmost wall, sending flakes of drywall and insulation and wiring flying through the air in its wake. The Time Agency employees dove to the ground, as the box was sent spinning through the air above their heads, until it bounced back into the center of the room. Finally, it froze in midair, began wheezing and groaning in time with its flashing lights — and then it vanished.

The Director picked himself off the floor, staring. “What...? How...?”

Beside him, Lantro tried to sneak away.

The Director noticed. Frustrated, he lunged out and grabbed Lantro by the collar.

“Agent Lantro,” the Director snapped, pointing to where the Police Box had disappeared. “Find out what Stenman-Hoyer’s doing with a couple of Time Lords — or you’ll be out on your ass faster than you can say ‘vortex clamps’.” He dropped him. “Kapeesh?”

Agent Lantro saluted, hit a few buttons on his Vortex Manipulator, and disappeared.


	2. Chapter 2

"Kicked her back into gear!" The Doctor grinned as the central column rose and fell steadily with its normal-pitched wheezing and groaning sounds. "Fault fixed!" Began running around the console, poking at buttons. "All systems normal, radiation gone, everything..."

Jenny cleared her throat. "Dad..." Crossed her arms. "That wasn't Earth."

The Doctor grimaced, grabbing his dropped jacket off the floor. "Ah." Shrugged it on his shoulders. "First planet was. Second, not so much. Galia-4! That's its name. Same formation process as Earth, sans Racnoss." He grinned, adjusting his bow tie. "There's a whole slew of planets like that. Becomes a bit of a fad in the 53rd century." Raised up his fists to simulate planets. "Travel back 4.5 billion years, line up the shot, and..." He smacked his fists together, miming an explosion. "Bang! Brand new life-supporting world, complete with plate tectonics."

The TARDIS pinged as it materialized on Galia-4, August 3, 5275. The Doctor ran forwards, flinging open the double doors to reveal a verdant forest of grass, trees, and little chirping, hopping frog-snail creatures with floppy rabbit ears.

"Almost no one's ever seen this place!" the Doctor announced as his companions followed him outside. A frog-snail-rabbit hopped over to him, and the Doctor bent down to scratch it behind its slimy ears. "Heard of it, yes. Seen it, no. Becomes a bit of a political thing in the near future. I always wondered what actually happened here."

Above them, a low-flying propeller plane careened through the air, shooting down a cascade of arrows. The Doctor yanked the frog-snail-rabbit out of the way as an arrow thunked down where it had just been standing. A small flag on the back of the arrow read: 'Back to Nature! End Plate Cracking!'

"Forgot to mention," the Doctor muttered, picking the arrow out of the ground as the scared animal hopped away. "This fad's a bit controversial."

"We sort of got that," said Jenny, crossing her arms.

"Not inherently bad or evil!" The Doctor dropped the arrow. "Just controversial." Closing his eyes, he threw open his arms and soaked in the sounds and smells and atmosphere of this strange but wonderful ecosystem. "Feel the life around us. The history beneath our feet. None of this would have been possible without a group of humans intervening and fundamentally altering this solar system's timeline. And with the Time Agency around to monitor and regulate the results — just look at what they've achieved!" He smiled, turning back to his companions. "And that's my point. When Clara and I stood on the precipice of history, deciding whether to save or doom the lives of..."

He trailed off.

Seo and Jenny were gone.

"Of course they are," the Doctor complained, ignoring the loud bang of the plane's engines misfiring above him. "I turn my back for two seconds...!" He sighed, shoving his hands into his pockets, and headed towards the now-crashing plane.

He froze as he felt the cold metal of a gun barrel against the back of his neck.

"Don't move, Time Lord," Agent Lantro warned.

* * *

"How long do you think he'll keep talking before he realizes we've left?" Jenny asked, as they ran. She glanced up at the crashing airplane as it careened into the trees a little ways off.

Seo shrugged. "Fifteen... twenty minutes?" A bang reverberated through the forest, as the plane crashed. "Probably all just boring exposition anyways." She laughed. "I always skip those bits in books. That way, it's more like a mystery!"

"No, you don't 'skip' them," Jenny said, rolling her eyes. "You physically tear out the pages and shout 'this is rubbish!' Then you have to go looking for them again later, when you can't figure out the plot."

Seo beamed. "So then it's a mystery _and_ a treasure hunt!"

"Besides," Jenny put in, "haven't you realized yet that exposition is really just character...?"

Seo grabbed Jenny by the arm, yanking her to the right. "Over there!" She pointed at a guy wearing a University of Mars sweatshirt with an Ice Warrior mascot on the back. "He must have used an emergency teleport." She waved at him, sprinting. "Hello! Arrow-shooting-person! We're here to...!"

An arrow swooshed towards Seo's head. She ducked — but it wasn't close. It thunked into a tree branch hanging a foot over her head.

"Pro-Plate Cracking pigs!" shouted the protester, clumsily drawing the bow and aiming at Seo and Jenny. "All life is sacred! Death to life on Galia-4!"

Jenny launched into a round off flip-kick that threw him back against a tree trunk. The protester whimpered, holding his bow and arrows over his head to protect himself. Jenny shrugged, and swiped them.

"Hey!" The protester lunged for them. "Those are mine!"

"Not anymore." Jenny tossed them to Seo — who cracked them over her knee and broke them into pieces. Jenny's eyes lingered on the slogan at the back of the arrows: 'Back to Nature'. "Oh, I see. The natural state of this planet is a lifeless, barren rock. Hence, back to nature; death to life on Galia-4." Shook her head. "What's your name?"

"Devin," said the protester. He smoothed back his gelled hair. "Why? You and your mining company gonna lock me up? Make me a political prisoner?" He threw out his arms and shouted, "Because I know the truth! Entire species are created just to be slaughtered for the sake of Stenman-Hoyer's mining profits!" He gestured at a hopping frog-snail-rabbit. "If that thing could talk, it'd tell you. Erasing all life on Plate Cracked planets would be a mercy! Imagine being forced to live in this stinking hell-hole — no trees, no grass, a black sky choked with pollution!"

Jenny and Seo looked around themselves at the beautiful verdant grass, idyllic forest, and incredibly clear bright blue sky.

"Shut up!" Devin shouted. "None of the other Plate Cracked planets look like this. Just... shut up!"

"Here's my question," Jenny put in. "Smashing planets together costs a lot of money. So does creating species. How does a mining company make a profit from any of this?"

"Slavery?" Seo guessed.

Devin looked at them like they'd just dribbled down their shirts. "Slavery? Dude, get with the times. No one does that anymore — not since the Agency was re-founded. It's all manufactured extinction events now." He cupped his hands to his mouth and started shouting into their ears, "Down with Plate Cracking! Down with Plate...!"

He was felled by a stun-blast.

"Thank you!" Jenny said, cradling her poor, abused ears.

"Don't mention it." A middle-aged woman wearing a long sleeved, button-down shirt stepped forwards, tucking a small stunner back into the pockets of her dust covered khakis. "Heard you arriving and thought you might need a rescue. Give me a sec."

The woman placed a small, blinking device on Devin's sweatshirt. It beeped and the protester vanished — teleported away.

"Where...?" Seo asked.

"Main Complex," said the woman. "Don't worry, we won't lock him up. Kids, you know? A stern lecture, a call to his parents, and a several thousand credit fine — and they usually learn their lesson."

The woman turned back to Seo and Jenny, looking them over. She frowned.

"We're..." Jenny struggled to think up a good cover story.

"Of course! The new interns." The woman laughed. "Sorry — I heard your shuttle was delayed until tomorrow." She paused. Then, a little hesitantly, "Who brought you, exactly?"

"Interns!" Jenny cried. "Yes, that's what we are." She stepped forwards, offering a hand. "I'm Jenny. She's Seo."

"Dr. Faye Mutajar," the woman introduced, shaking Jenny and Seo's hands. "Geologist." She turned and headed off. "Come on. I'll show you a little of the geology before I take you to HR."

Jenny and Seo looked at one another, grinned, then hurried after her.

"Unfortunately, you won't get to see the operations side," Mutajar called back to them. "Mining's on pause in this sector. Environmental regrowth stuff. Who did you say brought you, again?"

Jenny was about to reply, but Seo cut in first.

"What do the natives think of all this mining?" Seo asked, clasping her hands behind her back. "They can't be happy with you digging up their planet."

"No native sentient species," Mutajar dismissed. "And never has been. We designed it that way." Glanced over her shoulder at them. "You're not with Agent Lantro, right?"

"No," said Jenny. "We came here with..."

"Why make this planet inhabitable, then?" Seo interrupted.

"There's a link between life, plate tectonics, and the creation of valuable minerals," said Mutajar, putting her hands in her pockets. "Galia-4 will yield ten times the profit of an uninhabited planet. Twenty, with geological engineering."

Jenny shot Seo a surprised look. Seo put her index finger against her lips, pointedly.

"For Earth geologists, it's enough to know that limestone's a sedimentary rock made from skeletons and shells," said Mutajar. A flying fishy-looking creature swooped down in front of them with a melodic trill. "For Plate Cracking geologists, you have to be able to look at a layer of limestone and ask yourself, 'what sort of animal would create a better, more useful kind of limestone? And what conditions can I create in this planet's history to _cause_ that sort of animal to evolve?'"

Jenny sucked in a sharp breath. "So you go back in time and create animals that you know will fossilize into valuable rock layers? Then harvest their fossilized remains?" She shuddered.

"Time kills all species, in the end. And there's no point in creating life if you can't benefit from its death." Mutajar paused. Then, "Is this about Biv?"

"About what?" Jenny asked.

"The Agency regulates everything, of course," Mutajar continued, glancing back. "Can't even force-evolve a dung beetle without... the..." She frowned. "Where's your friend?"

Seo was gone.

Jenny spun around. Spotted Seo a short ways back, staring intensely at a patch of empty air and waving her hands about like she was doing the hokey pokey.

"Two seconds!" Jenny told Mutajar, as she ran back to Seo. Grabbing her by the wrist, Jenny leaned in and whispered, "What's wrong?"

"Something's here." Seo yanked back her wrist and waved her hands in front of her. "I can sort of feel it. Sort of sense it." She squinted. "But I can't see anything."

Jenny reached out, but felt nothing. Sensed nothing. Saw nothing.

"What's the holdup?" Mutajar demanded, running over. Glanced up at the sun. "I don't know how much... time..." She looked down at Seo. Frowned. "What are you doing?"

Seo was currently jumping up and down, thrusting her hand into and out of the cold patch. "Trying to find out how high it is!" She shrieked and stumbled, crashing into the grass. "Ow!" Shook out her hand. "That was really, _really_ cold!"

Jenny still couldn't feel anything.

Mutajar squinted at Seo, then at the spot in the air. "That's fascinating." Walked over and reached out with her own hand, then snatched it back. "Absolutely fascinating." She turned back to Seo, flicking her eyes up and down the girl. "Sorry, what was your name again?"

"Seo!" Seo said, springing back to her feet. She skipped forwards, throwing her hands in the air. "Oh, this is going to be fun! Invisible cold things. That sounds brilliant!"

Jenny gave a nervous laugh. "She's very excitable." The laughter faded, as she realized Mutajar was still staring at Seo with a sort of greedy eagerness. "Is something wrong?"

Mutajar blinked. Looked back at Jenny. "Wrong? No!" She smiled, putting her hands in her pockets. "No, nothing wrong. In fact — I think this might turn out to be a truly beautiful day."


	3. Chapter 3

"Talk? Of course I'll talk! Why didn't you say?" The Doctor leaned back in his chair in the basement conference room of Stenman-Hoyer Co.'s Main Complex, ignoring the gun in his face. "Love the chin, by the way." Tapped his own chin. "Part-Yinzi?"

Lantro sighed, frustrated. "Why are you on Galia-4?"

"Plate Cracking." The Doctor threw out a hand, quickly adding, "The issue, I mean!" Grinned. "Just here for the fun of the debate."

Lantro said nothing, but his stern glare said more than enough.

"No?" The Doctor sighed, then began rooting around in his pockets. "Oh, very well, if you're going to be like that — I have this sort of letter... note... card thing..." He frowned, remembering Lantro had cleared out his pockets earlier. "Well, _had_..."

Lantro went over to the bins containing the stuff he'd confiscated from the Doctor's pockets and picked out a battered leather wallet. "You mean this?" Tossed it to him. "Psychic paper. This isn't my first rodeo."

The Doctor caught it. "Ah." Tucked it into his pocket. "Note to self — construct secret pockets and get better psychic paper."

"Cut the cute stuff," Lantro said, walking back to him. "It's obvious why you're here."

The Doctor frowned.

"The Black Time Market?" Lantro prompted. "The Temporal Dark Web?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "We still talking about Galia-4?"

"You deny it?" Lantro asked. "You're saying you're _not_ selling your services or your ship on the black market? Remember: it's a crime to lie to a Time Agent."

"I'm not." The Doctor shot him a strange look. "Sorry, is this a thing? Plate Crackers using Time Lords and black market TARDISes to break the law?"

"TARDIS?" Lantro shook his head. "What's 'TARDIS'?"

"Our ships." The Doctor's eyes lit up. "Aha! Got it!" He jumped to his feet. "Your systems at the Time Agency are set up to monitor and regulate Stenman-Hoyer's travels through time. _Human_ temporal technology. But you can't properly pick up a TARDIS, because it's the wrong technology. So if I'm working for Stenman-Hoyer, it'd be an indication that they're trying to travel back in time secretly in order to break the law without you lot being able to trace them."

Lantro said nothing, waiting for the Doctor to go on.

"Well, they're not," the Doctor said. "Not using me, I mean. I don't know about the 'breaking the law' part." He grimaced, then ran towards the door. "Actually, if what you've said is true, I should find my companions before...!"

Lantro stepped between the Doctor and the door, clicking the safety off his gun.

"There was a rumor you could shoot a Time Lord twelve times," said Lantro, "and he'd still be around to answer your questions at the end." He slowly advanced on the Doctor, forcing him back into the chair. "Now, I'm a reasonable guy, Doctor, and I don't want to do that to you. But I'd advise you not to force my hand."

The Doctor fumed. "So that's how it's going to be? I tell the truth, you don't believe me, and I have to wait here being bored until your back is turned and I can escape?" He bunched his hands into fists. "Because I can stand a lot of things, Agent Lantro — but I can't stand being bored!"

"Did you survive the Time War?" Lantro demanded.

That threw the Doctor for a loop. "Sorry?" Looked around, as if Lantro might be talking to someone else. "Did _I_ survive?" He leaned forward in his chair. "You realize dead people aren't usually this chatty, right?"

Lantro gave a frustrated sigh. "Not _you_. I meant _you guys_. Time Lords." He ran a hand through his hair, annoyed. "It's said the Time Lords are extinct — their home planet destroyed. Since you're here, at least part of that intelligence is clearly wrong. I just don't know which part."

The Doctor scratched his head. "Me neither. Frustrating, isn't it?"

Lantro gritted his teeth. "What's that supposed to mean? You're saying you didn't fight in the Time War? You have no idea what happened?"

"Oh, I fought," the Doctor insisted. "We all fought. That doesn't necessarily mean I know all the effects." He shot Lantro a strange look. "Why do _you_ want to know?"

"Because we assumed we knew the number of black market Time Lord ships out there," Lantro began. "But if the Time Lords are making new ones..."

The door banged open, and a grey-haired man in a sharp business suit strode into the room. "This the Time Lord?" He looked the Doctor up and down, then turned to Agent Lantro. "No. I've never seen him before in my life. Satisfied?"

Agent Lantro gave an irritated sigh, putting away his gun. "Mr. Stenman..."

"Oh, _you're_ Mr. Stenman?" The Doctor jumped up, grabbing the man by the hand and shaking it. "Pleased to meet you. I'm the Doctor. Time Lord — but I guess you knew that." He nodded towards Lantro. "Sorry about Mr. Grumpy over there. Sort of the suspicious type. I'm not — well, not really — except one thing." He leaned in closer, and in a low voice, "How did you know how to hack my ship?"

Stenman yanked his hand away from the Doctor. "Are you implying something?"

The Doctor stepped back, waving an arm at Lantro behind him. "Lantro thinks you're interested in Time Lord technology. And since you came down here to interrogate me in person, I suspect he's right. Question is, when you hacked my engines, were you trying to kill me, or were you trying to redirect my ship here but didn't know enough to get it right?" He raised his eyebrows. "In other words, do you want Time Lord technology, or do you already have it? Is my appearance an opportunity... or a threat?"

Stenman's eyes narrowed. "Now, see here!" He pointed at the Doctor. "You trespassed. We had every right to tow your TARDIS, impound it, then drag you to court. It's not our problem if your TARDIS broke down the moment we connected to it."

"Isn't it?" Lantro asked.

Stenman glared at him, then at the Doctor. "I don't have to take this." He turned around, heading towards the door. "Do what you want to him, Agent Lantro. He's nothing to do with us. Nor are his two friends." He strode out of the room, shutting the door firmly behind him, with a, "And I intend to prove it."

The Doctor spun around to face Lantro. "We can't let him...!"

Lantro raised his sidearm again. "I'm not planning to." He nodded in the direction of the chair. "But legally, I can't do anything to help your friends until you're sitting in that chair, calm and subdued and no longer a flight risk." He stared at the Doctor, pointedly. "Got it?"

The Doctor grumbled, but sat back down in the chair. "That some sort of rulebook guideline?"

"I'm a Time Agent — I always do things by the book." Lantro holstered his gun and began fiddling with his vortex manipulator. "Looks like Stenman's calling around to see if anyone's picked up your friends yet. Normally, I'd just swoop in and grab them first, but I'm not allowed to leave you alone..."

The Doctor opened his mouth to protest, but Lantro cut in first.

"So I'm hijacking his teleport controls," Lantro explained, twisting a knob on the vortex manipulator, "so they'll materialize here, instead." He looked up. "Happy?"

The Doctor analyzed Lantro, carefully. "I can't tell if you trust me or not."

"You're not supposed to," said Lantro, as he finished programming his vortex manipulator. "But I don't trust Stenman, either. And until my investigation here is over — both of you will just have to deal with that."


	4. Chapter 4

"Don't tell her who brought us here," Seo whispered to Jenny, as they continued to follow Mutajar through the woods. "I don't trust her."

Jenny did a double take. "You're worrying about _him_?!" she whispered. Shook her head. "Seo, have you seen the way she's been looking at _you_?"

Seo seemed surprised. "She's been looking at me?"

Mutajar looked back over her shoulder at them, and Jenny shot her a reassuring smile. Mutajar's eyes rested on Seo for a half-second too long, then she snapped her eyes back to the front.

The moment Mutajar turned away, Jenny leaned over and whispered into Seo's ear, "Since Plate Crackers seem to view all life as a commodity — I'm guessing Mutajar's currently sizing up how much fossilized-Seo might sell for."

Seo's eyes danced in the sunlight. "Oh, well, she doesn't have to wonder!" She sprinted ahead. "She can just ask the art curators in Irkoli!"

Jenny sighed and sprinted after her. "Seo!"

That was when they left the forest and entered a clearing strewn with jumbled, brittle rocks full of fractured crystals. Beyond them lay a steep cliff and a boxy-looking canyon, its sides striped with geologic layers, its floor sporting two circular rings of brittle, pushed-up granite.

"An impact crater," Mutajar announced. She cringed. "I know it doesn't _look_ like one, but..." She waved her hands at the boxy-looking sides. "We've already mined out the sides, so you can see the strata." She clicked her fingers, and a metallic floating disk bobbed up out of the canyon. "Hop on."

As they followed Mutajar onto the hover-platform, Mutajar knelt down to insert a small key into a panel on its surface. A control pad sprung up, and she got back to her feet, using the controls to swoop the platform down the canyon wall. "Ooh." She stopped the platform, whistling at the rock. "Get a look at that G-T boundary line."

Jenny reached out and broke off a chunk of an oddly spongy black rock. "What is this stuff?"

"Fossilized plastic," Mutajar said. "Hundred mill old. A few serpentinite intrusions, but still pretty pure stuff. Lots of demand for..."

Seo grabbed it from Jenny. "And how does a layer of fossilized plastic," shook it, "turn up 100 million years ago on a planet that has never produced sentient life?"

"We shot an asteroid made of plastic at the planet," said Mutajar. "How else?"

The rock dropped from Seo's hand and thudded onto the hover platform. "But the deaths...!"

"Sorry, was there a part of 'G-T boundary' that you didn't understand?" Mutajar traced her finger over the clear line in the rock. "Stenman didn't like the direction evolution was going on the planet, so we had to create just the right kind of extinction event to give evolution a helping hand. Better kind of limestone, remember?"

"What?!" Seo and Jenny shouted.

"All Agency regulated, of course." Mutajar kicked the rock over the side of the platform. "Look, I think it's becoming pretty obvious that you're not our interns. So who are you, who sent you, and why are you here?"

"Who were you expecting us to be?" Seo asked, pointedly. She crossed her arms, meeting Mutajar's eyes with her own. "First thing you did was offer us a fake identity. You didn't care that we knew nothing. And, for an advocate of Plate Cracking, you really emphasize its negatives. So I'm going to guess that you're not on the Plate Crackers' side at all. You're taking them down from the inside."

Mutajar just looked at them both for a moment, considering.

"All right — I'll come clean," Mutajar said, at last. "I know who you are. I know why you're here. Like I said — I heard you arrive." She looked around. Lowered her voice. "So just hand it over. I know what's going on here; I can deal with it."

Jenny and Seo looked at one another, confused.

"You don't know what I'm talking about," Mutajar realized. An electronic gizmo attached to her upper earlobe began to vibrate, and Mutajar sighed, directing the platform down to the bottom of the canyon. "Fine. I'll explain everything. Just let me take this call and reassure my boss that everything's all right — or we'll all get it in the neck."

They touched down against the bottom of the impact crater, the three of them leaping off the disk. The area was filled with boulders and rocks and all sorts of abandoned mining equipment.

Mutajar raced off to take her call.

Seo bent down by a pickaxe, trowel, and brush near an abandoned mining cart. She picked up the brush. Frowned. Why was this here? She casually brushed some small stone flecks out of the bristles...

And fell over, gasping, hands clutching her head.

"Seo?" Jenny's hand was on her back. "What's wrong? What's...?"

The hand went away. Instead, Jenny reached for the abandoned pickaxe.

"Hold that thought," said Jenny. "Just spotted something interesting."

Seo looked up in time to watch Jenny sprint to the far side of the crater, squinting at the bottom rock layer. Then grinned. Gave Seo a thumbs up. And swung the pickaxe at the rock — several times.

Mutajar looked up. Ended her phone call abruptly. With an angry shout at Jenny, she began running at her, clicking her fingers to summon the hover platform.

Seo leapt forwards, sprinting to intercept Mutajar before the hover platform could appear. But it swooped in and picked her up before Seo got close, and Mutajar leapt onto its surface — not even needing the controls as it zoomed her towards Jenny.

Jenny dropped the pickaxe, grabbing the small item she'd just dug out of the rock. She leaned down to blow away the dust — but before she could, Mutajar leapt off the hover platform and tackled Jenny to the ground. Jenny, surprised, yelped, and Mutajar slammed a small device onto Jenny's chest.

Jenny vanished into thin air.

Mutajar got up, panting, brushing dust from her clothes. She didn't notice Seo until it was too late.

Seo grabbed Mutajar and slammed her against the rock wall. "What did you do to Jenny?"

"What my boss told me to," Mutajar said. She seemed irritated. "There was nothing I could do! That pilot who brought you here — they got him. He's telling them everything about you two. If I hadn't sent Jenny back to the Main Complex, I'd have blown my cover!" She struggled to get free from Seo, but couldn't. "If it helps, I was supposed to send you back, too! But I didn't!"

"Because you didn't have the chance," Seo snapped.

Mutajar glared at her. "Because," she corrected, "you're the one able to sense things that have been hidden."

Seo hesitated.

"There's something hidden on this planet, Seo," Mutajar insisted. "If I don't find it — you can't imagine how many lives are in jeopardy."

Seo leaned in, eyes fixed on Mutajar. "Who are you?"

"I told you — Faye Mutajar!" Mutajar insisted. "Daughter of Phil Mutajar — you know, _the_ Phil Mutajar." She analyzed Seo's blank expression. "Riots of '23? The Mars Sit-In?" She sighed, frustrated, as Seo continued to give her the same blank stare. "The Anti-Plate Cracking movement!"

Seo said nothing, but let Mutajar go.

"Look, Stenman-Hoyer's up to something really shady," Mutajar said. "They're not even _trying_ to hide it." She waved at the verdant forest at the top of the crater. "The environment's too nice, for a start. Plate Cracked planets never look like this. All the others are polluted and stripped bare."

"Oh." Seo hadn't actually known that.

"And that's not even getting into the fact that this," Mutajar held out her hands, indicating the crater around them, "is geologically impossible." She lowered her hands, fixing her eyes on Seo. "But all that stuff amounts to nothing compared to what's _really_ been hidden here. The fate of whole species lies in the balance. I can't find it, but I think you can."

Seo frowned. A part of her sort of wished Mutajar would stop being so cryptic. The other part of her preferred it this way, because it was so boring to just be told everything all the time! This way, it was a mystery!

"Find it, Seo," Mutajar pressed. "I need it. Now."

Seo turned to where Jenny had been using the pickaxe and traced her fingers around the hole in the rock. Her fingers tingled.

"There _is_ something here," Seo said, closing her eyes and moving her hands across the rock. The tingling grew more and more intense. "Just out of reach. Like an itch I can't scratch."

"No, I didn't mean like...!" Mutajar gave a frustrated sigh, then turned and started to walk off. "You're just one of those new age hippy types, aren't you? Well, forget it. I don't need a 'rock whisperer'. What I need is..."

Seo ignored her. Slowly, her mind was clearing, the tingliness and the itch both fading away to reveal the thing that had remained just out of reach. Seo laughed. It was so easy, now, to just reach in and...!

"What the...?" The thud of footsteps, as Mutajar raced back to Seo. "But that's not...!"

Seo opened her eyes, beaming, as the rock beneath her hands was now wobbly and wiggly and glowing in a swirly sort of way.

"There you go!" Seo said, poking it with an index finger. "Found you your hidden thing! It's a locked portal." She leaned in, studying it. Excitement bubbled up inside her. "I wonder where it leads."

Mutajar just stared, her jaw dropping open.

Seo offered a hand to Mutajar. "Wanna find out together?"

Mutajar shifted her stare from the portal to Seo — staring at her the same way a nun might if she'd just seen the devil appear before her. "What _are_ you?"

Seo sighed. "Well, if you're going to be like that," she muttered, turning back around and stepping through the portal, "then I don't want to travel with you, either."

As Seo vanished, the rock solidified behind her. Mutajar's eyes went wide, and she ran at the portal. "No, wait!"

She thudded into the solid rock.

"Come back!" Mutajar shouted. "I didn't mean...!" She trailed off, resting her hand against the rock. "Damn it."

For a moment, she just stood there, eyes closed, cursing herself out inside her head.

Then, her eyes popped open. "Unless..." She rolled up her sleeves. "Maybe, just maybe..." She glanced around herself to make sure no one was looking, then took a deep breath.

And vanished.

* * *

Jenny's head spun, as her atoms and molecules reassembled themselves in the basement of the Main Complex — a few paces from the Doctor, sitting in a chair, and beside a blue-chinned man pointing a charged laser gun at her head.

"Well, that's one of them," said the blue-chinned man. He looked Jenny up and down. "You a Time Lord, too?" His eyes stopped at the rock in Jenny's hand. He grabbed it. "What's that?"

Jenny snatched it back, then ran to the Doctor. "This planet's nowhere near Gallifrey, right?"

The Doctor frowned. "Right..."

Jenny shoved the rock in his face. "Then how did this get here?"

The Doctor took it from Jenny, brushing the dust off its surface. Stared, as he recognized it. Bit melted, bit damaged, very fossilized — but unmistakable.

It was a circuit from a TARDIS.

The Doctor leapt to his feet. "TARDIS," he realized. "Stenman used the word TARDIS." He spun around, pointing at Lantro. "But you didn't know it!" He spun around again, turning to Jenny. He took her by the shoulders. "You're brilliant," he whispered.

Then, without a word of warning, he leapt at the door, buzzed it open with his sonic screwdriver, and raced into the basement corridor.

"Hey!" Lantro shouted. "You can't...!" He swore, then holstered his gun and sprinted after the Doctor. With a leap, he caught the Doctor's arm and swung him around, extracting the sonic screwdriver from his hand. "How'd you get that sonic device?" He yanked the sonic behind his back as the Doctor reached for it. "And you're not going anywhere until...!"

Jenny plucked the sonic out of Lantro's hands. He spun around, and she scooted out of his reach, pointing it at the nearby cameras and blowing them out in a shower of sparks. Then she turned the sonic on Lantro.

"Wait!" the Doctor warned, jumping in between them. To Lantro, "How long have you been doing this 'investigation' of yours, Agent Lantro? How many times have you come face to face with something like this," he raised up the rock, "and not known what it was?"

Lantro's expression remained stony. "Until my investigation is concluded, you're still..."

The Doctor shoved the rock into Lantro's face. "Circuit from a TARDIS," he said, pointing to it. Pointed to himself. "Not mine. Someone's! But not mine. And Stenman-Hoyer _has_ gotten their hands on it." Handed the rock to Lantro. "Your proof is buried inside the planet. Has been for millions of years. You just needed me to point it out to you."

Lantro released the Doctor's arm, his face melting into a frown as he examined the fossilized circuit.

"So the real question, Agent Lantro," the Doctor said, his voice low, "is do you follow your rulebook? Or come with us," he gestured at himself and Jenny, "and find out the truth?"

Lantro looked between the fossilized circuit and the Doctor. Then, smile spreading across his face, he decided, "Let's do it."

The Doctor grinned. "Hold onto that," he instructed Lantro. Then, raising his hand above his head, called out, "Jenny?"

She tossed him the sonic and he caught it in his outstretched hand, turning on his heel and spinning back around to run down the corridor. The others chased after him.

"How did it get here, anyways?" Jenny asked, as they ran. She nodded at the artifact in Lantro's hands. "I didn't think Time Lords usually left bits of tech lying about."

"They didn't. Or I thought they didn't." The Doctor waved at Lantro. "But Lantro says there's a whole black market full of TARDISes out there. So maybe they did." He skidded to a halt, as the corridor branched off in three directions. He spun around, analyzing each in turn. "Let's see... if I were a megalomaniacal leader of a company mucking about with technology I didn't understand, my office would be..." He turned to his right. "There!"

He began to sprint down it, but Lantro grabbed him by the sleeve and yanked him back.

"You're going to confront Stenman?" Lantro cried. He shook the artifact at the Doctor. "We need to find the rest of this thing, not start picking fights. If you show Stenman what we found... there's no telling what he'll do to you!"

The Doctor adjusted his bow tie and opened his mouth to explain.

"Besides," Lantro cut in, before the Doctor could start, "I've got a secret locked room I need you to break into."


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! So while I was recently rereading Pygmalion Lost, I was shocked to find out that there was a chapter missing! It was a really important chapter, too. I was kind of floored that it had taken two years for anyone to notice (including me). Maybe that means it wasn't so important after all?
> 
> So I fixed the problem. Chapter 31 has been added to Pygmalion Lost. I even wrote into the chapter title that it was updated in 2020, just so people could find it.
> 
> Sorry that I keep having this problem of skipping chapters. I know why it happens, but I'm not sure how to fix it. It's not a problem with writing (the chapters are already written ahead of time), it's a problem with the posting. Either I decide to do one final proofread, get absorbed in the story, and forget that my readers haven't gotten that far ahead yet - OR - I get really busy with life and don't have time to do the final proofread, and therefore don't notice it's the wrong chapter.
> 
> I'm trying something different this time, so fingers crossed that I don't make this mistake again!

"A _Time Lord_?" Mr. Hoyer's projection scratched its bald head, the faded blue background behind him flashing the words 'SECURE CALL PROTOCOLS IN USE'. It was a miracle he'd been able to get a link like that in the first place, considering he was in the midst of a multi-day sales pitch to potential clients on Earth.

"Have you dealt with one of them before?" Stenman checked.

Hoyer gave a small chuckle. "Yeah, sure. Had a great team, once: a Time Lord, a unicorn, and the fucking Easter Bunny." He shoved his hands into his pockets. "Look, Mort — you sure this guy's legit?"

"Do give me some credit." Stenman pulled up a hovering holographic projection of the Doctor into the air. "I had Zeera run a scan the moment he turned up." Data flashed above the holographic figure. Species: Time Lord. Planet of origin: Gallifrey. Closest database match: the Doctor. "See?" He clapped his hands together, and the hologram smushed into a ball and blinked out. "You can guess why he's here, of course."

"No shit." Hoyer sighed, then pointed at Stenman. "You want my advice? Most important thing right now is to keep Lantro and the Time Lord far away from Zeera. Got that? Don't even let them speak to her."

"Naturally," Stenman chuckled. Then, noticing Hoyer wasn't, added an annoyed, "Ed, really..."

Hoyer folded his arms. "Don't tell me you thought the Time Lord showing up was just a coincidence? Lantro knows that Zeera..."

A knock at Stenman's office door sliced through the air like a knife. Both men froze as the door creaked open.

A woman with mousy brown hair in a firm bun poked her head inside. "Mr. Stenman, sir..."

"Just Zeera." Hoyer put his hand to his heart. "Jesus, I'm too old for this shit."

"Yes, but you also said that when we were twenty." Stenman relaxed, smiling, as he raced over to the woman at the door. "Mrs. Kardeni! Come in, come in. Quickly, now. Edmund's on the line." He quickly ushered her inside — so he could shut the door behind her. "Just giving him an update."

Kardeni looked between them both, frowning. It looked, for a moment, like she suspected they'd been talking about _her_.

"Update on the estimates for the next Patasi shipment," Hoyer cut in quickly. "You got those yet, Zeera?" He pointed his thumb over his shoulder. "Got a freaky octopus monster here who wants to know."

"I can send those to you shortly, Mr. Hoyer," Kardeni assured him. She shot Stenman a quizzical look. "You haven't told him about the Time...?"

She trailed off, her eyes on Stenman's desk.

"Oh, the Time Lord!" Hoyer barked out a laugh. "Yeah, he's said. Look, Zeera, Mort's gotta be full of shit, right? Next, he'll be bitching about..."

Kardeni ran to the desk, shoving a pile of papers aside and pointing beneath them. "How long has that light been blinking?" She looked up at Stenman. "The one on my desk didn't go off at all."

A chill ran over Stenman. He'd so relied on Kardeni to tell him whenever the light was blinking, he never even thought to clear away the papers so he could see his.

Hoyer's jaw dropped. "But how...?"

"I'd say the answer to that is fairly obvious." Stenman clasped his hands behind his back and turned to the projected image of Hoyer. "Don't worry, Edmund — I'll take care of this." He unlocked the top drawer of his desk. "And just to make sure, I'll engage Protocol Z and meet with the Trangedonsto customer myself."

"Fine," said Hoyer. "Just remember what I said."

"Noted." As he broke the connection, Stenman slid the gun from his desk drawer into a pocket. Then he turned and walked briskly out the door, Kardeni running after him. "Mrs. Kardeni, go assemble a security team and tell them to meet me outside door 64C in ten minutes." Hand in his pocket, he adjusted the settings on his gun. "Tell them to bring a body bag."

"I'm sure that won't be necessary," Kardeni said, brushing the whole thing off with the casual wave of her hand. "It can't be that bad. And besides, Andrew clearly wants the Time Lord alive." She began to run faster, passing him. "Five minutes, and I'm sure we'll have this..."

Stenman grabbed Kardeni by the arm, swinging her around. "I don't give a damn what 'Andrew' wants. It's _my_ company — not Agent Lantro's. You work for _me_! Not _him_!"

Kardeni stared at him, a mix of anger, shock, and betrayal on her face.

Stenman cringed and let go of her arm. Oh, this was a fine mess he was in. Last time he listened to Hoyer!

"You think I _brought_ the Time Lord here, don't you?" Kardeni said. She shook her head, incredulously. "When have I ever been disloyal to this company? When have I ever let you down?" She clenched her hands into fists. "I haven't even spoken to Andrew in two months. I'm not bringing in Time Lords for him."

"I know that," Stenman insisted. "And I appreciate it. Really, I do. I just think it would be best for everyone involved..."

"...if I got out of the way and let you 'handle this'." Kardeni sucked in a sharp breath. "Very well, Mr. Stenman. As you say — it's your company, not Agent Lantro's." She headed off towards the security offices. "So clearly, we should just do the exact opposite of everything he says — never mind the consequences."

"Zeera..." Stenman sighed.

"I'm not arguing with you, Mr. Stenman," Kardeni called back, walking even faster down the hallway. "Kill as many Time Lords as you want. I'm sure that if we find out we need one, another will show up soon enough. Not like they're endangered or anything."

She turned the corner and was gone.

Stenman grumbled, but raced to hatch 64C, swiping his pass through the reader to reveal a second secret corridor. There, at the end, lay his 'magic door'. Shutting the hatch behind him, Stenman ran to it. His 'magic door'. Time Lord technology — no one could make so much as a scratch in the door, let alone open it without the key.

Stenman touched the doorknob. The lock had been picked. Someone was inside. No... from the sounds of it... three someones...

Stenman threw open the door and yanked out his gun, aiming at the Doctor as he entered. "Step away from the machinery."

Inside the dark and tiny room, clustered with alien-looking machinery and flickering holograms, Jenny and Lantro slowly raised their hands. Behind them, yet another silent alarm flashed on the wall, spilling mauve light across their faces, even as holographic error messages popped up around them, warning, "Breach detected," "Viewing platform destabilized", "Dimensional transcendentalism warping," and so on.

The Doctor, seated in front of them, didn't even look up.

"Not now, Doctor busy!" The Doctor yanked a panel off the machinery and buzzed his sonic at one of the fluid links. As the fluid bubbled, a holographic display sprung up in midair, its text circular and alien. The Doctor squinted at it. "Oh. That shouldn't happen."

Jenny glanced between the Doctor and the gun, then dropped her hands and leaned in to read the alien text. "I can't understand it. What does it say?"

"Invisible elephants with red toenails," the Doctor said. Altered the settings on his sonic and buzzed again. "It's nonsense. Gibberish! Gobbledygook. Whatever's happened, the diagnostics are all scrambled."

Stenman flicked his eyes over to the text, frowning.

Agent Lantro took advantage, whipping out his own gun and aiming at Stenman. "Don't be a fool, Stenman. We're trying to fix this." He edged closer to the Doctor, protectively, his eyes never leaving Stenman. "Is it what you thought it was, Doctor?"

"Yes. No. Yes-ish in a no-ish sort of way." The Doctor thunked it with his fist. "This isn't a proper control point — more of a viewing platform. I've only got access to limited systems here, and most of those are hopelessly scrambled." He buzzed his screwdriver at something else, and a separate hologram began spewing numbers at him. "It looks like Stenman-Hoyer either cannibalized a TARDIS, or they cannibalized something that looks very much like a TARDIS. But as for what they turned it into, or how this company got their hands on a TARDIS in the first place, I haven't a clue." He paused. "A TARDIS... and a staser." He glanced back at Stenman and his oddly Gallifreyan gun. "Care to explain?"

Stenman glared at the Doctor, and Jenny took advantage to dart in and grab Stenman by the hands in an attempt to wrestle the staser from him. He grabbed the staser tighter to keep hold of it — inadvertently pressing down the trigger. The staser fired.

The console the Doctor had just been using burst into flames.

"No!" The Doctor grabbed a fire extinguisher and sprayed the flames, but the damage was already done. "You thick-headed...!"

Stenman elbowed Jenny in the stomach and shoved her to the ground. He pointed the staser back at the Doctor — but Lantro shot the staser out of Stenman's hands. The staser clattered to the floor, and Jenny swooped in and picked it up.

"Don't be stupid, Stenman," Lantro warned, stepping towards Stenman and pointing his own gun directly in the man's face. "Shoot the Doctor, and I _will_ put you up for murder." He met Stenman's eyes with his own. "I've got a job to do, and I intend to do it. So stand aside and let him work..."

"...or you'll shoot me." Stenman scowled, but raised his hands in surrender. "You know, Lantro, I'm starting to think that putting up with you all these years might have been my biggest mistake."

"Yes, it's a shame we have all these annoying 'laws' we have to follow, so society doesn't fall apart," said Lantro. "Good point, Stenman. Well made."

The Doctor, meanwhile, had plucked the staser from Jenny's hands and was examining it in fascination. "It's a staser," he said. "Not a knockoff or an imitation. A real staser." He disarmed it easily, then held it up to examine it from all angles. "I haven't seen one of these since I was last on Gallifrey."

Stenman and Lantro didn't seem to hear him, as they continued to glare at one another. Stenman kept inching towards one of the walls, trying to reach for something when Lantro wasn't looking — but snatching his hand back when Lantro paid attention, again.

Lantro, frustrated, shot at the wall — causing whatever Stenman was reaching for to spark and fizzle. "I'm a man of my word," he warned. "So don't try me."

Jenny's eyes skimmed across new holograms that kept popping up nearby her, her face bending into a deeper and deeper frown. "Even if that control panel is out of action, the systems are still destabilized. That level of destabilization can't be good for this planet — past, present, or future."

"Nor its solar system," the Doctor added. He scratched his head. "Nor the next few parsecs along, come to think of it."

"Right," Jenny said, scanning the area around them. "There wouldn't happen to be a handy lift nearby, to take us to the place where we can control everything properly, right?"

"No," said Stenman, a little proudly. "There's only one access point — and I'm not telling you where it is."

The Doctor jumped to his feet. "Mr. Stenman, allow me to explain." Strolled over to him. "Whatever you were trying to do with this technology — it's over. Lantro's seen more than enough to shut you down. And if your cannibalized TARDIS breaks, it'll wipe out Galia-4 and all your profits with it." He shot the guy a grin and clapped him on the back. "So you're going to let the three of us out that door and let us look at anything we like and muck about with anything we see. Know why?" He grinned. "Because you need someone..." He pointed to the flickering red alerts around the room, "...to fix that. And since I'm the last of the Time Lords, I'm the only one who knows how."

Stenman dismissed this. "My secretary will take care of it. She takes care of everything."

"She won't, you know," Lantro muttered, stifling a laugh.

Stenman turned on him. "Why? Because you told her not to?"

"Because," Lantro countered, "the Doctor is right. This isn't just some paperwork you can foist off onto your secretary. Only a Time Lord can solve this for you." Then, beneath his breath, muttered, "Besides, you don't pay her enough."

"I pay her fine," Stenman snapped. He looked between the Doctor and Lantro. "So... you're the only one that can fix this, huh?" Scowled. "I don't like it."

"And yet, you don't have a choice." Lantro shrugged, shooting him a smug grin. "Hurts the ego, doesn't it?"

Stenman met Lantro's eyes, steadily. "Two months," he reminded him, in a cold whisper.

The smugness dripped off Lantro's face.

Jenny, not noticing this side conversation, was already in the middle of asking the Doctor, "But Dad, if there's only one access point and he won't tell us where it is, then how...?"

"Who needs a preset access point?" the Doctor dismissed. "Not me. Maybe a turtle or a pigeon or something — but not me." He gestured at the room around him. "It's Gallifreyan tech. My bread and butter. Chances are, there'll be all sorts of hidden access points that Stenman doesn't even know about. Easy peasy!" He raised his eyebrows at Stenman. "So? What's it to be? You going to let me out that door, or will you leave all your systems to overload, vaporizing everything within a five parsec radius?"

Stenman stood there a moment, considering his options. Then, finally, he moved aside from the door. "Fine."

The Doctor grinned, adjusting his bow tie. He gestured at the others to follow him...

But that was when Stenman stepped into his way, again, a hand raised. "On two conditions."

"No, no, no, no!" the Doctor insisted. "That isn't how this works! You...!"

But Stenman pressed a secret button on the inside of the doorframe, opening the hatch at the far end of the corridor. The hatch doorway was labeled 64C. A group of armed guards marched through the secret corridor, pointing their weapons over Stenman's shoulders at the trio behind him.

"I'm fine with you fixing my systems, Doctor," Stenman said. "But I won't let you destroy what I've built." He stepped backwards, the armed guards parting to let him through. To the guards, he commanded, "Take the girl."

Jenny struggled, as the armed guards reached in and grabbed her away from the others. One of the guards kept his weapon trained on Jenny, and several others trained their own guns on the Doctor and Lantro.

Lantro stepped out, ready to start a shootout — but the Doctor grabbed his arm and forcibly lowered it.

"Fine!" the Doctor said. "Jenny stays here. Fair enough." He shrugged. "And your other condition?"

Stenman smiled. "You tell me what happened."

The Doctor blinked. "I'm sorry?" He looked around himself, checking to make sure something hadn't just happened while his back was turned. "What happened where? When?"

"When your other companion destabilize my systems!" Stenman shouted. "Don't act so surprised. She's the only one who isn't here. Who else could it be? I just want to know what she did and how. Because this..." he gestured at the viewing platform with its many alerts and alarms, "should be impossible in this time and place." His eyes narrowed on the Doctor. "Except she did it."

The Doctor, for a long moment, said nothing. He wouldn't answer.

"Shame," said Stenman, turning around and marching out of the secret corridor. "The systems have broken down — so give the evacuation order! Oh, except Mrs. Kardeni, of course. She has to remain here. As for the rest of us, we'll probably need to be a few star systems over to avoid the blast...!"

"Stenman," Lantro cut in coldly, "this is a really bad idea."

Stenman ignored him and continued walking off.

"Wait!" the Doctor shouted.

Stenman turned around. "Yes?" He was grinning, as he walked back. "Something to say?"

The Doctor fiddled with his sonic screwdriver, idly, trying to convince himself to go through with this. "Yes, okay, all right," he said at last. Sighed. "TARDIS systems are fundamentally dimensional. Bigger on the inside. That sort of thing."

Stenman crossed his arms. "And...?"

"My other companion carries around a... special key," the Doctor admitted, "that can unlock those. At a guess, she tried to unlock something small, mucked it up, and is scrambling to stabilize everything before I notice and scold her for it." Sighed, mouthing the word, "Teenagers."

Stenman considered this. "Interesting." Then stepped aside and nodded at his men — who let the Doctor and Lantro go, but held Jenny fast.

The Doctor paused by Jenny as he and Lantro made their way through the guards. He gave her a long, sad look, then swept her into a tight hug — so he could whisper into her ear:

"Lose Stenman and snoop around."

He withdrew from the hug, his hand on Jenny's shoulder. "Best behavior," he told her. "Don't give Stenman any reason to hurt you. Got that? I'll be back soon as I can. Promise."

Then he turned to Lantro, sonicked the vortex manipulator on his wrist, and they both disappeared.

Stenman stepped into the spot where they'd just been, carefully — making sure they were really gone. He grinned, then turned to head back to his office.

The guards shoved Jenny forwards as they followed him. She stumbled. "Hey, watch it!"

Stenman paused, glancing back at Jenny, as if only just remembering she was still here. "Oh. Throw her somewhere..."

He paused.

Then, with a small smile, held up a finger to them. "Wait there." Walked briskly over to his own office door, knocked, then opened it without waiting for a reply.

A woman with mousy brown hair in a tight bun looked up.

"A moment of your time, Zeera?" He stepped aside and gestured at Jenny. "I have the Doctor's friend here. The still very much alive Doctor, I should point out."

The woman began to fidget nervously with her crucifix necklace — then caught herself and put her hands behind her back, getting up from her seat and heading over to the door. Her eyes flicked up and down Jenny, a deep frown on her face.

"Mrs. Kardeni, my secretary," Stenman introduced. He nodded to the security guards, who pushed Jenny forwards. "She'll look after you until Lantro and the Doctor return." He flashed a smile at Kardeni. "I'm sure you know what I'm _trusting you_ to do."

Kardeni flicked her eyes back over to Stenman, picking up those words. He flashed her a grin that looked very forced. She sighed, then held up her head high, deftly stepping in between Jenny and the surrounding security team and hooking an arm through Jenny's.

There was a small gun in Kardeni's hand.

Jenny could feel it now poking into her ribs.

"Should have guessed, from the man who foists everything onto his secretary," Jenny muttered. She glared at Kardeni. "I thought you didn't get paid enough to do this."

Kardeni ignored her. "Thank you, security team," she said to the guards with a friendly smile, as she extracted Jenny from their grips. "I don't think we'll be needing a body bag for this one." With her spare hand, she poked the gun a little deeper into Jenny's ribs. "Right this way, Miss..." She frowned. "Sorry, I didn't catch your name."

Jenny didn't give it. She flicked her eyes back over to Stenman. "Whatever you're up to, we're going to stop you."

Stenman turned back towards his office, no longer interested. "Make sure you get the truth out of her, Mrs. Kardeni. Agent Lantro's gone off with the Time Lord and may not be back for some time — so we'll never have a better chance to see what he's really up to."


	6. Chapter 6

Seo's vision swam as she stumbled out of the portal, coughing and struggling not to throw up. As her surroundings slowly came into focus, Seo realized she'd moved. Same planet, same vegetation, same animals... but the impact crater was gone. Like it had never existed.

"You!" shouted a voice.

Seo turned round, but didn't have a chance to see a thing before she was tackled to the ground by a morass of feathers and muscles. The creature grabbed her by the hair, yanking her head to the side and bringing his switchblade towards her throat.

A six-fingered hand reached in and grabbed the switchblade.

"What are you doing?" demanded a feminine voice. Seo glanced over, to find a feathery lizardish creature with two small tusks protruding from her cheeks and a colorful display of feathers across her back and arms. She glared at the switchblade in disgust. "Are you trying to kill her?!"

"Yeah," said Seo's captor, with a shrug, "but mostly just to piss you off."

"What?!" The female flipped the blade down and pocketed the weapon. "You idiot, Iporil! You'll mess up everything." She turned to Seo, raising her arms to show off her long, silky feathers. "Worry not, oh human gun-runner. _I_ am Yimi, not him. And I promise that you shall come to no harm under the watchful eye of the All-Powerful One."

"Says you," Iporil said, still not letting Seo go. "I prefer to think the All-Powerful One has a bad case of glaucoma."

"Iporil!" Yimi ran at him, shoving her shoulder into his side and throwing him off his balance. As he flailed for purchase, he let Seo go, and Yimi threw her arms up to the sky. "Oh Great One, what did I do to deserve such a crappy brother?" She looked down at Seo. Blinked. "Hang on. You're not carrying a single gun."

Seo turned and ran for her life.

She heard the others shouting and chasing after her as she raced through the forest, but she was faster than they were, and didn't huff and puff as much with every step. Seo glanced around herself. When was this? Back in time, maybe? Back before the asteroid fell and made that crater?

One thing was for sure: Stenman-Hoyer was hiding a native sentient species. One that had...

Seo stopped suddenly, in mid-run.

"One that's not just heard of humans," Seo breathed. "They've heard of guns." She glanced back over her shoulder, hesitating. "Something's going on here. Something..."

She doubled over, pain suddenly crushing her and weighing her down until she could no longer stand. Her vision blurred, then swam, as the forest faded to the black and red of a burning landscape. Seo reached up, only to discover her hand was drenched in blood...

That was the first moment she realized she was screaming.

Like a rubber band, the world snapped back into focus — now leafy woodland once again. Seo found herself gasping for air. Looked down at her hand — blood-free. What had just happened?

Yimi was leaning down, helping Seo to her feet with a far-too-strong grip.

"...agree with me," Yimi insisted, catching Seo as her legs buckled beneath her. "Not my stupid brother. He's just a blasphemer. He sleeps late six days out of seven." She dusted off Seo's clothes for her. "I assume our agreement still stands?"

Iporil crossed his arms, looking smug. "Call me crazy, Yimi — but _that_ looked like a prophetic vision. And a way cooler one than anything _you've_ ever gotten."

"Shut up," Yimi snapped.

Seo steadied herself. Then planted a grin on her face, leaping away from them both. "Hi! I'm Seo. I've only just arrived on this planet. I found a hidden portal and stepped through to see what was on the other side. Turns out, you two were!"

Yimi and Iporil froze. Frowned. Looked at one another, baffled.

"Wait..." Yimi shook her head. "So you're _not_ with Gevry — I mean, with Commander McMann?"

Seo quirked an eyebrow at her. "Commander? You sure about that?" She leaned in and whispered, "Because, thing is, Stenman-Hoyer Co. has been telling the rest of the universe that your people never existed. So why's a random Earth Commander in the loop?"

"An Earth military fleet has orbited our world for years," said Yimi, pointing up at the blue sky. "We can see them at night — specks of light above the Devastation." Her eyes narrowed, as she looked Seo up and down. "Why don't you know this? Surely, if you're human, you must..." Her eyes went wide. "You're not human!"

Seo shoved her hands on her hips. "I so am human!" she huffed. "Well, ish. And I don't know what those lights in the sky really are, but I doubt they're a fleet of...!"

Seo never got a chance to finish.

Percussive bang-bang-bangs rang through the forest, and as Yimi and her brother both turned to one another in panic...

A wave of nausea and dizziness crashed over Seo, and spots began to dance before her eyes as the forest faded again and she found herself crashing to the ground. A chain slithered out of the rock behind her and lashed out at her like a snake, biting through her blood-strewn right wrist and embedding itself into her flesh. She screamed, began struggling, but another chain lashed out and bit her left wrist — and more bit her ankles. Seo thrashed, as chain after chain burrowed through her body and bound her in place...

Next thing she knew, an apple-like fruit had been shoved into her mouth, and the forest snapped back into perfect focus around her. Seo's wrists were now chain-free and no longer bleeding, her pain was gone, and the black landscape had vanished. Yimi was carrying Seo over her shoulder.

Seo spat out the apple-thing. It was obviously only put there to stop her screaming.

"...late for worship," Yimi was saying to her brother. "That's not the humans' fault. It's yours! By placing my life at risk, you've jeopardized our entire holy movement!"

"You were the one skipping worship to meet the gun-runner," Iporil replied. "I just slept in. If you ask me, the Hunters are here for _you_."

"We're both late!" Yimi snapped. "They don't care why." Sighed. "Just shut up and keep running!"

Another blast of gunfire reverberated through the forest, slamming into the tree beside them and shredding its trunk to pieces. It was as if the shrapnel finally gave Seo the power to move on her own again. She squirmed out of Yimi's grip, flipping through the air and landing on the ground feet-first, already running as she landed.

"Sorry — bit of a Drusilla moment," Seo apologized, running beside them. They couldn't really sprint, so Seo had to keep slowing herself to keep pace with them. She ducked another shot. "Is this really how your government reacts every time anyone's late for church?" Shook her head. "I'm starting to see why you want a revolution, Yimi."

"I know! Right?" Yimi threw open her hands. "It's been an hour since worship began! And only _now_ does the High Priest send out his Hunters!" She raised up her head, giving a haughty huff. "When I'm in charge, anyone who is even five minutes late to worship will be hunted and destroyed."

"But on the plus side," Iporil said, as they raced past the edge of the forest, "no punishment for taking stealth naps _during_ worship!"

"Iporil!" Yimi shouted.

Seo squinted and stumbled as they emerged into a clearing of brittle rocks and sunlight — but Yimi and Iporil didn't. The feathers on their face ruffled and adjusted, and Yimi actually yanked Seo after them as they ran, full pelt (or fast as they could go) over the edge of the cliff in front of them — their feathers spreading out and catching the wind... just enough to slow their fall the tiniest amount.

Beneath them lay a canyon where others of Iporil and Yimi's kind rushed around with pickaxes, trowels, and brushes, pushing mining carts filled with rock and ore. Seo barely had time to register this, as she fell through the air, the ground coming closer and closer...

They landed, with a thud, onto a hovering metal platform that seemed to have come out of nowhere. Yimi pulled off a panel of the platform and jammed the pendant of her necklace into the inner workings.

Seo stared. "Wait a second..."

The Hunters — three men of Yimi and Iporil's species, attired in silver masks and armed with shotguns encrusted with rubies and emeralds — appeared at the edge of the canyon. They raised up their rifles, taking careful aim.

A panel popped up in response to Yimi's pendant, and Yimi slammed her fist on several buttons. As the Hunters fired, the platform sprung into life and whooshed them away from the shots, zipping upwards out of the canyon — err... impact crater... — and into the forest on the opposite side.

"But that was the same impact crater!" Seo shouted, glancing back over her shoulder, as she clung to the hover-platform. "Except it shouldn't exist yet — not if my visions are real!"

Yimi kept poking at buttons. "What is the human complaining about?"

"Unless there are _two_..." Seo began. Except she could see marks and scratches on this hover platform that had been on the one she and Jenny had used earlier. It _was_ the same.

"There is only one Devastation," Yimi snapped. "Abozalu fell to the planet — not twice, but _once_. His craft left that scar upon the ground." Glanced behind her. "The Kunja tribe labor there, now." Scowled. "Impure savages!"

"Oh, yeah, no one's as pure as you," Iporil muttered. "That's why you keep skipping worship to get more guns and explosives."

Yimi snapped back her head to glare at him. "Are you committed to ridiculing my entire life?"

"What can I say?" Iporil shrugged. "I love being an asshole."

The crack of gunshots sounded again — the bullets missing them by inches, as Yimi jerked the platform downwards. New Hunters had emerged, these riding zebra-horse-ish animals and advancing on them much, much faster.

Yimi banked a hard left to avoid the next set of shots, then glanced over her shoulder. "If we can just find some way to lose them...!"

A wheezing, groaning sound echoed through the forest. Seo's hearts leapt. She knew that sound anywhere. "To the right!" She grabbed the controls from Yimi and forced the hover platform over. "We have to get to the TARDIS!"

Iporil shrieked, and Seo glanced to her left, where she saw another group of three more Hunters galloping after them, opening fire on the hover platform. Seo tried to jerk the controls like Yimi had, but wasn't quick enough. One of the shots struck the hover platform along its underside, making the wiring spark and smoke. The platform lurched and spun haphazardly, but still continued forwards.

"Just a little further," Seo prayed, as the TARDIS' materialization sounds grew louder and louder. "Just a bit...!"

That was when the TARDIS suddenly appeared in front of them — without any of its usual fading in-and-out. Yimi shrieked, and Seo yanked the controls to swerve and avoid the ship — but wasn't fast enough. The hover platform slammed into the corner of the TARDIS, smashing itself apart and tossing the passengers onto the grass several feet away.

Seo peeled herself off the ground and leapt to her feet. She recognized this place, too! This was where they'd landed back when she and Jenny and the Doctor first arrived. So if the TARDIS had needed to materialize to get here, this _must_ be the past! Right?

Seo grabbed the others and dragged them after her, running towards the TARDIS. But they were slow, and they hadn't made it even half-way there before the TARDIS began wheezing and groaning and fading away.

"No, come back!" Seo let go of the others and threw herself forwards at full speed, grabbing for the handle to the double-doors. But the metal of the door handle melted beneath her hands like ice, and the TARDIS vanished. Seo stared at where the TARDIS had just been...

An empty, vacant patch of forest.

Yimi grabbed Seo by the arm and yanked her to the left. "Forget the box. We have to run!"

"I dunno — after that box thing, I'm more inclined to just slit her throat," Iporil muttered, scrambling after Yimi and Seo. "You may talk a big talk about ritual sacrifice and slaughter, Yimi, but you never seem to deliver. It's _really_ annoying."

Yimi's grip on Seo's arm tightened as she continued to sprint forwards... but another set of Hunters galloped in front of them, cutting off their escape. Yimi darted to the left, but found more Hunters cutting off that escape as well. Yimi stopped, spinning around — but no matter which direction she looked, Hunters were closing in on them.

"Yimi," Iporil hissed, inching closer to her. "What are we going to...?"

"Why do you think I brought the human along?" Yimi flicked open Iporil's switchblade and shoved Seo in front of her, pressing the blade against Seo's throat. To the Hunters, she shouted, "Nobody move, or I'll open this human's throat as a sacrifice to Abozalu! That'd start a war with the humans — and you can't risk that."

The Hunters dismounted and encircled the trio, keeping their rifles cocked and aimed, but not shooting.

"Now slit her throat anyways," Iporil told Yimi. "That'd be hilarious."

Yimi ignored her brother. "Here's the deal," she told the Hunters. "The High Priest is corrupt. A fat despot who values money above the blood of sacrifice and the prayers of the faithful. Follow him, and your souls will be forever damned. Join me, and we can rise up and fly alongside the holy flock, stretching wings of fire and light!"

She sounded confident and self-assured — but Seo could feel Yimi's hands shaking.

"We do not hunt _you_ , Yimi of the Olingi Tribe of the River," one of Hunters said. " _Your_ faith is unquestioned." He gestured at the others, who aimed at Iporil. "We seek your lazy brother."

Yimi's eyes went wide. "What?" She dropped Seo and ran over to throw her arms around her brother, protectively. "No!"

The Hunters around her snickered.

"I mean..." Yimi was visibly shaking now — on the verge of panic. "My brother isn't...!"

"You do not live up to your promises, Yimi of the Olingi Tribe of the River," said the Hunter who spoke earlier. "A true servant of Abozalu would have throttled her lazy brother herself. But not you." His eyes narrowed. "You are nothing but a coward. A rebel. Your ally, Faye Mutajar, is already dead. And you and your brother will soon join..."

Seo grabbed the gun from one of the Hunters, shoved the butt into his stomach, then ducked as another ran at her, using the gun to flip him over her head and make him land on his backside. She clicked the safety back on and unloaded the rifle, tossing the ammo over one shoulder and the weapon over the other.

"Hello, I'm Seo!" Seo called out to them, stepping away from Yimi and her brother. The Hunters were keeping her in their sights, not Yimi and Iporil. "Sorry about the fighting stuff. I'm not really violent. I just like attention."

Iporil grabbed Yimi by the hand and dragged her after him, running away from the Hunters and into the forest.

The Hunters swiveled their guns round — and Seo screamed, "Hey! Don't shoot at them, shoot at me!"

The Hunters all froze. Then turned back, training their guns on Seo, as Yimi and Iporil escaped. Yimi glanced back at Seo, and for a moment, Seo thought she might mouth a 'thank you'...

But she didn't.

"You are aware of what you are asking?" one of the Hunters asked Seo. "You do so willingly?"

"What? Talk? You bet!" Seo put her hands on her hips. "Yimi gave you a here's the deal speech. Now it's my turn. None of this is what it seems. Stenman-Hoyer Co. owns this planet and is desperate to cover up your existence. Which means I've got one really important question..." She looked the Hunter nearest her in the eye, pointedly. "If Faye Mutajar really did get here before me, why don't you already know all that?"

"Faye Mutajar is nothing," the Hunter nearest her said, stepping forwards, his voice growing fervent and fiery and vicious. "We seek salvation for Abozalu and we search for His Great Relic. That is all."

Seo's eyes lit up. "But that's _not_ all! Stenman-Hoyer..."

"Enough of this," the Hunter interrupted. "She has confirmed her choice. She gives her life in place of the others." He gestured at his men. "Secure her."

They all lunged for Seo — but she easily leapt out of the way and spun through the air above them, landing past the group and sprinting off into the forest. She waved at them. "Sorry. Forgot to mention — my species evolved as runners and Slayers. So I've got a bit of an advantage when it comes to..."

A string with two stones on either end swung out and wrapped itself around Seo's feet, toppling her to the ground. She tried to untangle the rope and get up — but the Hunters were on her already, securing her arms and legs. And it was right at that very moment that Seo remembered... she had just created a portal, so she didn't have any super-strength.

Oh.

Oops.

"On second thought — can we negotiate?" Seo offered, as they shoved her into a kneeling position. "I know I gave up my life for theirs, but — how about loaning it back to me for a bit while I do some useful stuff for you? I have 13 lives. I can pay it back with interest!"

The Hunter she'd spoken to earlier approached, placing his gun into its holster on his back and taking out a really big, really vicious-looking knife. "You have voluntarily given yourself up in the place of the unbelievers," he said. "In doing so, you forfeit their right to a quick death. Your blood shall slowly bathe Abozalu's holiest grounds, and we shall rub salt into your wounds so that your lingering cries of agony can be heard even as deep as His prison."

Seo blinked. "Wait, what?" She tried struggling again, but to no avail. "When was _that_ ever made clear?!"

"And that is only in compensation for Iporil's death," said the Hunter. "For Yimi's, we shall cut off your toes one by one, then slice open your belly and..."

"Have you guys ever thought about getting this in writing?" Seo demanded, as they wrestled her towards their zebra-horses and the Devastation. "Because this is starting to get pretty complex."

The Hunters stopped as the air suddenly lit up in a smattering of sparks. Seo stared. It wasn't ships, as Yimi had said. Seo was watching little bits of space-time tear themselves apart, then knit themselves back together again.

"Behold!" The Hunter gestured at it with his knife. "It is a sign! Abozalu wishes us to sacrifice the girl here and now!"

Seo really _did_ struggle now. A _lot_.

"No, really, you don't want to do this!" Seo shouted at them, as they dragged her towards the weak point in space-time. "You're going to destroy the universe! Maybe the multiverse!"

They shoved her into the midst of the sparks.

"All praise to Abozalu," said the Hunter with the knife, coming over to Seo, "for sending us so many magic signs near the Devastation." Raised up the knife. "For the battle hymn and the...!"

A flash of light blazed across Seo's vision, then slammed into a tree on her right and vaporized it.

The Hunter with the knife turned, suddenly alarmed. The others kept a firm grip on Seo, but their eyes were fixed on the source of the vaporization ray — a human man with close-cropped hair, dressed in an army uniform. He stepped forwards, gun still raised.

"Hand the girl over," said the human, aiming his vaporization gun at the Hunters holding Seo, "now."

The Hunters hesitated — but didn't let go of Seo.

"The law of Abozalu must be upheld," said the Hunter with the knife. "This featherless weakling has offered herself in place of the blasphemers. Therefore, her blood _will_ slake Abozalu's thirst upon this day."

"I don't think so," said the man. "You spill one drop of her blood, and I'll call up to the Earth War Fleet overhead and wipe you guys out. Every last one of you." He vaporized another tree, and the Hunters stiffened. "So hand the girl over."

The Hunter with the knife scowled — but gave a signal to the others, who loosened their grips on Seo. She was finally able to spring free, and stumbled away from them, suddenly feeling extremely dizzy. She almost collapsed — but the man caught her.

"Whoa! Careful there!" The human man grinned and winked at her. "Commander McMann, SHC division 10. And my question for you is — what's a gorgeous girl like you doing getting yourself killed on a beautiful day like this?"

Seo quirked an eyebrow at the patch sewn onto his army uniform — _SHC_. "Well, I _was_ busy nearly destroying the multiverse — which is sort of a hobby of mine." She pointed at him. "But then you showed up, and I started trying to work out why an employee of a mining company from the 53rd century is dressed up like a British Redcoat from 1776."

The man stared at her, a bit rattled. "Wait, what?"

Yimi leapt out at them, grabbing the man away from Seo. "Stop it, both of you. We have to go." She glanced back at the Hunters, who were aiming their rifles at the four of them. "Can't you feel it? Something is coming. Closer and closer, sooner and sooner, it approaches."

"Meaning these guys are gonna be trigger-happy until it gets here," McMann said, shoving Seo at Yimi. "Get the girl back to the car. Don't let her out of your sight — not for any reason." He aimed his gun to cover their retreat. "She's got a lot of explaining to do."

Yimi grabbed Seo by the arm and led her off. Seo stumbled as the trees blurred around her, the air turning thick with smoke and ash...

And suddenly, the whole forest was gone, replaced by that black-red world. Seo's chains hissed at her as she struggled against them, biting down harder into her wrists and ankles and overloading her senses with pain. Seo thought she was screaming, but then realized it wasn't _her_ — a hundred thousand never-screams and ever-screams appeared and disappeared in the air around her, flooding the air with desperation and hopelessness and a deep desire not to be forgotten...

Then it was all gone, and Seo found herself in a different part of the forest — beside Yimi and Iporil. Traces of blood lingered on her wrists, left over from the vision.

"You know, there's something really weird about her blood," said Iporil, as he and Yimi watched the blood fade away and vanish. "And something really weird about her visions."

"They're not visions, Iporil," Yimi insisted. "She just fainted. It's just... I don't know... weakness. Very ugly, unattractive weakness."

McMann stumbled into sight, walking backwards, taking shot after shot with the vaporization gun. "I think I bought us some time." He tossed Yimi a set of keys, and she caught them. "Get her in the car. We're going to have to..." He froze. Stared at Seo. "Hang on, weren't you bleeding a moment ago?"

"She does that a lot," Yimi informed him. "She has very unusual but ugly blood. It appears or vanishes randomly. And she faints and screams all the time."

"And you said she was _human_?" McMann shoved his gun into its holster and ran over to them, grabbing Seo and dragging her to her feet. He could feel the double pulse in her wrist, and he seemed utterly bewildered by it. "What are you?"

"Confused?" Seo offered, yanking her hand away from him. The odd thing was, her wrists still _really_ hurt.

Yimi looked up into the sky and shuddered. "It's coming." She suddenly ran to the car, yanking open the double-doors in the back. "Like the rush of a thunderstorm as it flows backwards through time."

"What's...? No, actually, forget it, we don't have time." McMann yanked Seo forwards and shoved her into the car. "Iporil, Yimi, get in. Sooner we get you guys away, the sooner these Hunters will leave you alone — and I can figure out what you're talking about."

The car looked unnervingly like a police car.

A fact that was made abundantly clear when Yimi and Iporil fastened Seo into a set of handcuffs attached to one of the seats.

"Brilliant, that's me told," Seo sighed. "Look, can't we just talk a bit before we...?"

Yimi shoved a sticky substance over Seo's mouth. "Not until Gevry says so." She made the sign of a triangle before her face with both hands, as Iporil shut the doors. "May Abozalu's will be done. May His worshippers be strengthened and His enemies smited."

Seo tried to talk anyways. But no one cared.


	7. Chapter 7

The Doctor and Agent Lantro materialized at the bottom of the surprisingly boxy-looking impact crater. The Doctor skimmed his eyes across the abandoned mining equipment. Trowels? Brushes? That wasn't mining equipment. Then his eyes lit up, as he noticed the spot where Jenny had dug the TARDIS component out of the rock wall.

"Aha!" The Doctor ran towards it. "Bet that's exactly where Seo was standing when she unlocked everything!" Whipped out his sonic and scanned the rock face. "And if I'm really, really clever, I can...!"

The Doctor paused.

He spun around, peering at the area nearby, as if he missed something.

"What is it?" Lantro asked, approaching. He squinted at the rock layer beside the Doctor. "And how did your companion open a rock wall with a key?"

"What? Oh, that." The Doctor ran over to a nearby tree, peeking around it as if he expected to see someone there. "I'll explain later!" He hopped over to a cluster of rocks, buzzing the area with his sonic and checking the readings. "Interesting..."

Lantro shook his head, confused. "What are you doing?"

"Double signal!" the Doctor announced, waving his sonic high up in the air. "Like someone else followed Seo through." He brought down his sonic, checked it again, then scratched his head. "Someone who's now in two places at once."

Lantro laughed. "That's all?" Shrugged. "That's not too tough with time travel." He leaned down, analyzing the rock layer where Jenny had dug out the device. "So... this is where it is? Their TARDIS — our proof."

"Possibly," the Doctor agreed, "but unless you have a jackhammer on you, we'll never get to it." He ran back to Lantro, grabbed his arm and sonicked the vortex manipulator. The top popped open. "So we follow Seo!" He began rooting around inside.

Lantro hesitated. "You sure you know what you're doing in...?"

"Time Lord!" The Doctor sonicked something inside the vortex manipulator. "Not easy to break through a dimensional mismatch whatsit, you know, without Seo along. Well, not unless we knew where the access point was — but there's no hope of that."

"You said you'd find all sorts of access points," Lantro reminded him.

The Doctor sonicked the manipulator again. "That's what we in the trade call 'a bluff'. Works every time. Well, sometimes." He yanked a small gold piece out of the manipulator and raised it in the air, squinting. "What's this doo-hickey?" Tossed it over a shoulder. "Meh. Probably nothing."

"Uh..." Lantro's eyes followed the piece as it thudded into the mud. "You _sure_ you know what you're doing?"

"Oh, yes, absolutely," the Doctor insisted, shoving the top back on the vortex manipulator and sonicking it shut again. Then, hastily, added, "That's not a bluff!"

Lantro sighed, running over and picking up the dropped component from the ground. "Remember what I said earlier, about lying to a Time Agent?" He trudged back, pocketing the component. "Don't force me to put you behind bars, Doctor."

The Doctor waggled his sonic at Lantro, chidingly. "It's only lying if I don't work out all the answers by the end." He grabbed Lantro's wrist, pressed a button, and sonicked the rock wall at the same time with his other hand. "And that never happens. Almost."

The rock beside them shimmered, wobbled, then began to ripple like a liquid and glow in a swirly sort of pattern. The Doctor blinked. Then leant down and poked at it.

"Although," he muttered, "I wasn't expecting this." He withdrew his finger, watching as a small string of gloop came away with it. Then, slowly, faded into nothing. "Fascinating."

Lantro gave a pointed cough.

"Still not a bluff!" The Doctor hid his finger behind his back. "Definitely know what I'm doing." He straightened his bow tie. "Well, then, Agent Lantro. As I always say..." He ran towards the rippling rock, and leapt into its surface. "Geronimo!"

* * *

Instead of a flat, forested landscape sporting a single deep crater, the Doctor and Lantro found themselves on the shore of a large but shallow lake, in a valley surrounded by steep mountain slopes. Vine-like, gnarled trees dotted the landscape, their leaves little more than pine needles — and huge clouds of yellow pollen rolled across the grass every time the wind blew.

The Doctor sneezed.

Lantro's eyes fell on the center of the lake. "Doctor..."

The Doctor sneezed again. "This pollen! Well, can't blame the trees. That's what happens when you create a world and forget to make any bees."

Lantro sighed, stepping away from the Doctor and stripping off his socks and shoes. With a running start, he leapt into the lake and swam towards the shape he'd seen bobbing in the center.

The Doctor spun around. "What...?" He paused, as he finally noticed the body bobbing, face-down, in the center of the lake. "Ah." Whipping out his sonic screwdriver, he scanned the area. Checked the readings. "Ah."

Lantro swam to the corpse and grabbed it by the arms, turning it over. He called out to the Doctor, "It's not your companion!"

"Didn't think it would be," the Doctor called back. He squatted down by the water and took another reading with his sonic. "Interesting..."

Lantro, in the meantime, tucked the body under one arm and swam back to shore, hauling the corpse onto the sandy beach and laying her down. It was a woman — middle-aged with a dark complexion.

"Faye Mutajar," Lantro told the Doctor, closing her eyes. He stood up, putting back on his socks and shoes. "A Stenman-Hoyer scientist. I don't know how she managed to get here."

The Doctor frowned. "Me neither." He waved the sonic through the air. "No, that's a lie. I know exactly how she got here. She followed Seo. Except..." The Doctor checked the sonic and sighed. "...Seo isn't here. Never has been."

Lantro brushed back his wet hair, stealing a glance at the sonic. "You got a bio-tracker in that thing?"

The Doctor laughed. "Wouldn't do much good! Seo doesn't show up on machines." He showed the sonic to Lantro. "My sonic screwdriver can sometimes pick up a bit of something when she's close. But right now, she's not. So it's no good." He analyzed the readings again. "Thing is, Seo's the Key. So wherever she goes, she'll be at the center of the instability — and that _is_ traceable." He tapped the display. "But it's not here."

Lantro looked increasingly confused as the Doctor spoke. He blinked, then slowly nodded. "I see."

"You do?" the Doctor asked, hopefully.

Lantro laughed. "Not a word," he admitted. He turned around, looking upwards towards the mountains. "So — no Seo and no cannibalized TARDIS. What next?"

The Doctor didn't seem to hear. Instead, he tucked away his sonic screwdriver and knelt down beside Mutajar's body, examining her carefully. He picked up her wrists, rolling back her sleeves. Blinked. Frowned. "Ah." Then, he began to go through her rightmost pocket.

Lantro immediately dropped down and started going through her leftmost pocket. "Doctor, what are we looking...?"

"Something to explain why we aren't where Seo is," the Doctor explained as he pulled a bundle of soggy papers out of her pocket. "See, we haven't moved — not in space and not in time."

"Then how...?"

"Not sure yet," the Doctor said. "We followed the last person in — which I thought was Seo. Turns out, it was Faye Mutajar here." He shoved the papers aside and kept fishing around in her pocket. "Maybe she got shunted away from Seo due to an incorrectly calibrated vortex manipulator."

Lantro sighed, glancing down at his vortex manipulator as he reached back into her pocket. "You probably should have thought of that before you dissected it." He pulled out a water-logged stun blaster, and shoved it aside. "It's _supposed_ to auto-calibrate, if you don't tear out the calibrator and toss it into the mud."

"What? Oh, no, not yours!" The Doctor shook his head, fishing inside her pocket again. "Why do you think I removed that doo-hickey in the first place?" He took out a water-logged make-up kit. "A 53rd century auto-calibrator trying to deal with active Key energies and distorted Huon haze from a cannibalized, damaged TARDIS? It could launch you into the void! Or trap you in a bubble... universe..."

The Doctor trailed off, as he pulled the last thing out of her pocket: a small card that remarkably — and for no reason that he could make out — was completely dry and legible. In block letters in the center was written:

REMEMBER ME

The Doctor read it through sad eyes, then handed it to Lantro. "For you."

Lantro took it, confused. "Me?" He glanced at it. "Why?"

"Because," said the Doctor, "she's an undercover Time Agent, of course."

Lantro dropped the paper, startled. "What?! But she...!"

The Doctor raised up her left wrist, revealing the suspiciously vortex manipulator shaped tan mark.

Lantro just stared for a second. "I... um..." He coughed, then composed himself. "I don't think I'm allowed to confirm or deny any of this."

The Doctor dropped Mutajar's wrist. "No?" He hopped back to his feet. "No. Of course not! Top secret." He looked around himself. Then he clapped his hands. "Right! Theory!" He grabbed Lantro's arm, yanking him up to his feet. "Mutajar didn't remove the doo-hickey from her vortex manipulator, causing a cataclysmic...!"

The Doctor trailed off, as he noticed Lantro's vortex manipulator. It was black and charred and smoking.

"Or... not," the Doctor muttered. He yanked Lantro's arm closer and sonicked the vortex manipulator open. Waving away a cloud of smoke, he started rooting around inside. "That shouldn't have happened."

Lantro craned his neck to see. "What _did_ happen, exactly?"

The Doctor pointed inside the vortex manipulator. "Temporal oscillator. Overloaded!" Pointed at the other side. "Drift compensator. Burn out." Pointed at the center. "Snake-eyed thingy. Kaput." He closed up the top of the vortex manipulator. "No, this isn't a bubble universe. But it's also not a coincidence. Can't be. Someone set up a trap at the threshold of that portal — specifically designed to burn out a vortex manipulator and divert the person using it away from Seo."

Lantro frowned, confused. "Why?"

"Probably Stenman-Hoyer trying to make sure neither of us come out of here alive," the Doctor dismissed. He checked the settings on his sonic screwdriver, and nodded. Then began marching off towards a gap in the mountains. "Unless it's..."

He paused.

For a moment, he just stood there, out in the open, wind whipping through his hair. He seemed to be concentrating.

"No," the Doctor decided, finally. Started walking. "No, of course not. That'd be silly." He hit himself on the side of the head. "Just got a few crossed wires up here, that's all. False positive."

Lantro looked confused.

"Last of the Time Lords. Always and forever." The Doctor shoved his hands in his pockets, head bent downwards. "Silly of me to think otherwise."


	8. Chapter 8

Jenny had been bracing for some dismal cell or brutal interrogation. Or maybe a mad scientist's lab! Something dangerous, at least! But here she was, sitting in a nicely decorated break room, Kardeni serving her a cup of hot tea and a biscuit.

Jenny eyed the ensemble, suspiciously.

"It isn't," Kardeni said, sitting across from her. "Poisoned, I mean." Reached into her pocket and drew out her gun again. "But if you don't answer my questions, I _will_ shoot you. So what is Andrew planning?"

"Andrew?"

"Agent Lantro," Kardeni corrected, thrusting the gun closer to Jenny. "Just tell me!"

Jenny squinted. "Hang on." She leaned forwards and plucked the 'gun' out of Kardeni's hands. It neighed, flicking its mane and tail. "It's a toy unicorn."

The unicorn snorted, and a puff of smoke shaped like a red heart emerged from its backside.

"A toy unicorn," Jenny qualified, "that farts hearts."

Kardeni sighed, then pulled the _actual_ mini gun out of her pocket and threw it on the table. As it clattered, the trigger was pulled, and it began lighting up the air with harmless sparks and pretend war noises.

Just another toy.

"Kids," Kardeni sighed. "You never know what'll wind up in your pockets." She cradled her own teacup, slumping in place. "Sorry. I'm not great at this."

"There's an understatement." Jenny nudged the teacup and biscuit away from her. "I can see through this, by the way. I'm not talking."

Kardeni raised an eyebrow. "See through...?"

"The pity routine." Jenny leaned over the table, eyes fixed on Kardeni. "Stenman was the bad cop. You're the good cop." She picked up the biscuit and threw it at Kardeni — who ducked. The biscuit smacked into the cupboard behind her head and fractured into crumbs. "Well, whatever you're after, I'm not talking. So get out the thumbscrews! Turn the rack. Just stop this pointless charade."

Kardeni opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off by a phone icon that popped up in midair in front of them. Kardeni grimaced. To Jenny, "Sorry. I have to take this."

She swiped a hand in the air, then turned away, placing that hand against her ear. She spoke quietly, and Jenny, at first, couldn't hear her. Jenny reached into a pocket and brought out a tiny earbud. Stuck it in one ear.

Kardeni came in crystal clear.

Finally! Time to spy.

"Is that bad?" Kardeni was asking. She paused, her jaw tightening. "Tests. That's all I ever hear. More and more tests." Another pause. "Yeah... one day at a time..." She sucked in a sharp breath. "Out of network? What do you mean, out of network? Where is it?" Shook her head. "That's _in_ our network! Call the insurance company." She squeezed her eyes shut, frustrated. "That makes no sense!" Sighed. "How much is this going to cost us?" She froze. Nearly started hyperventilating — but got herself under control. "Panicking? I'm not panicking. Why would I be panicking?" She ran a hand down her face. "I know I will. That's the problem. Do we have someone to drop Alex off at swimming?" She paused. "I know." Another pause. "Yeah. Yeah, I guess." She took a long, shaky breath. "Love you too."

She lowered her hand from her ear.

Took a second to compose herself.

Then she turned back to Jenny, warming her hands with the teacup. "Sorry. Ignore that. You were telling me about Andrew."

Jenny felt her hearts break a little. "Who's in the hospital?"

"Nobody." Kardeni tore open a tea bag and steeped her own cup. "It doesn't matter." She stared down at the cup, watching as the color spread from the tea bag across the dull, lifeless water. "Andrew would say..." She stopped herself. Shook her head. "No — stupid habit." Took a sip of her tea.

"Andrew... Lantro," Jenny double checked. She drummed her fingers against the teacup. "Hm..."

Kardeni looked agitated, but didn't elaborate. Instead, she conveniently seemed to notice that Jenny still wasn't drinking any tea.

"I'm not trying to drug you," Kardeni insisted, shoving the tea caddy in front of Jenny. "No truth serum. No poison. No nothing." When Jenny didn't take one, Kardeni leaned over, yanked one out, and opened it for her. "You really don't trust us, do you?"

Jenny didn't touch the tea. "You're right." Nudged the teacup further away from her. "You really _are_ bad at this."

Kardeni sat there a few long moments, eyes locked with Jenny's. Then finally, she sat up straight, waved her hands in the air in a coordinated series of sweeping motions. "Fine, then. Be like that." A holographic array of papers and documents and expense reports appeared before her, floating in midair. "Unless I get some answers, Mr. Stenman won't pay me a dime for babysitting you. That means, thanks to you, I'm going to have to work unpaid overtime instead of spending time with Craig and the kids — and I don't know how much of that I've got left." She began filling in columns on a spreadsheet. "So if you're going to be difficult, you can just sit there moping, while I get some work done."

Jenny jumped to her feet. "Suits me fine." She turned on her heel, and headed towards the door. "I wasn't planning to stick around, anyways."

She only took three steps before an electric zap ripped through her body, and she found herself doubled over.

"We deal with protesters all the time. We've learned our lesson." Kardeni raised up a small black gadget, barely bigger than her thumb. "It won't do any permanent damage. Just a bit of pain if you leave the designated area." She flicked her wrist, and the gizmo disappeared. "Now, sit."

Jenny hesitated. Then, without really knowing why, went back to the table and sat down.

She thought maybe she could spy on some of the work Kardeni was doing — see if it shed any light on Stenman and Hoyer's illegal activities. Instead, though, she found herself just staring at Kardeni, through the holographic readouts. Studying her face, her gestures, her eyes...

The door slammed open, and a man and woman walked into the break room, chatting together. They stopped the moment they saw Kardeni and her young guest. They looked at one another, then at Kardeni.

Then they started turning away.

"Come on in — don't let a protester ruin your lunch." Kardeni waved them inside, her eyes shifting from the spreadsheet to Jenny, who arched an eyebrow at her. "Haley and Tom are marine biologists doing ecosystem engineering for a few hundred million years ago. Currently, they're trying to spur a permanent alteration in the ocean's acidity level."

Haley raised her eyebrows. "Ocean acidity?" She walked over to the fridge at the far end of the room. "That's so last week, Zeera. Get with the times!"

Tom, in the meantime, grabbed a plastic-wrapped bagel from a nearby cupboard. "Nowadays, it's all about the radioactive mutant super-kelp."

Jenny frowned. Turned in her chair, to face them. "Radioactive mutant super-kelp?" She crossed her arms on the back of the chair, resting her chin on her hands. "That sounds fascinating. What is it?"

Tom blinked, surprised she was interested. But shrugged, and explained, "Hopefully, a way of dealing with an invasive species."

"We're working 430 mill back," said Haley, opening the fridge and grabbing out a lunch bag. "The whole planet's dominated by these huge coral reefs. Only problem is — the coral isn't natural, and we don't know who put it there. It just kind of appeared one day, destroyed the whole ecosystem, and took over the planet." She headed back to the table, eyes shifting to Kardeni. "Because of the Time Agency's regulations, we can't destroy it, so we're trying to rebalance the ecosystem some other way."

"Hence, the radioactive mutant super-kelp," said Tom, tearing open the plastic packaging and grabbing a packet of cream cheese. Glanced back at Jenny. "You know, I can't help but notice you haven't bitten my head off, yet."

"Bitten your head off?" Jenny asked.

"Well, you're a protester, right?" Tom sat down beside her, taking out a knife and spreading some cream cheese onto his bagel. "They're usually all over us for dealing with invasive species. Vandercomf-Johnson Co. dealt with a Krynoid infestation last month. Anti-Plate Crackers picketed the streets near their HQ for days — protesting the death of the Krynoid!"

"For a Krynoid?!" Jenny asked. "Evil, unstoppable planet-eating death plant?" She shook her head. "That's just absurd."

Haley grabbed a sushi roll out of her bag. "No, that's pretty normal for protesters. The absurd part is the Agency's reaction. They're opening an 'inquiry' — to see if they need to throw anyone in jail." She took a bite. "I swear, if a bunch of Zygons showed up on Galia-4 tomorrow, the Agency would hand the planet over to them, no questions asked."

"And don't get me started on..." Tom began.

Jenny nodded. She was only half listening, though. At the other end of the table, Kardeni had received another call. She'd turned away, and was speaking quietly, trying to keep the others from hearing.

Jenny could only pick up fragments.

"...don't stick a crayon up your brother's nose!" And "...no, he's not. You're not going to see Uncle Lantro for a long time..."

Jenny leaned forwards, and took back her tea. She finally took a sip.

It wasn't poisoned.

"What's your name, anyways?" Tom asked Jenny. "We don't get many level-headed protesters around here."

Jenny blinked. "What?" Noticed he was talking to her. "Oh. Uh... Jenny. And I'm not a protester. I'm just here because I'm... waiting for someone." She returned her gaze to Kardeni. Then, in a hushed voice, to Tom, "Is there something going on between her and Lantro?"

Haley gave a low, suggestive whistle.

Tom shushed her. "I told you — until you get proof, you can't win the office pool!" Turned back to Jenny. "Simple answer: Kardeni does all the regulatory paperwork. Lantro likes to hang out around her desk, so he can grab it easily. Plays with her kids, too, when they're around. They are, at the very least, _really_ good friends."

"Yeah, 'just really good friends' my foot," Haley said. She glanced over at Jenny. "Still, whatever they had together — it's over now."

Jenny glanced between them. "Over? Why over?"

"Dunno — maybe Mr. Kardeni found out," Haley said, fishing around in her bag for another sushi. To Tom, "Do you know the details?"

Tom shook his head. "Better ask Zeera."

Kardeni hung up. Looked back around. "Ask me what?"

"You and Lantro," said Tom, between bites of his bagel. "What happened? It's like Stenman and Hoyer are terrified to let you guys talk to each other anymore. I've heard they won't even let you be in the same room together."

Kardeni dismissed this with the shake of her head. "It's... complicated." Her hands were trembling around the teacup, and she tried to still them. "I found out some stuff. Andrew..." She shook her head again. "Well, let's just say, I don't really want to talk to him about it anymore."

Tom and Haley exchanged a look.

They were about to say something, when Tom suddenly gave a yelp and yanked a fossil out of his pocket. He stared at it. "Oh, you have got to be kidding me." He passed it to Haley.

Haley took it. Brushed her fingers across the raised letters, as she read, "Hey guys. Time machine died and the teleport's broken. Need a lift. Yours, Lowell." She made a face. "You know, he's going to be graffitiing dumb-ass messages across the vortex, next."

They waved goodbye, as they headed off to go rescue their coworker.

Jenny crossed her arms, analyzing Kardeni. "So. Lantro."

"I'm not having an affair," Kardeni snapped — without even being asked. "It wasn't like that."

"Yeah, I know. I'm guessing it's worse." Jenny gave a small smile. "You stumbled across something illegal that Stenman and Hoyer are doing — and now, they're terrified that you'll tell your good friend, Agent Lantro?"

Kardeni scoffed, looking down at her teacup. "We're not doing anything wrong at this company." Then, as if just realizing she'd forgotten, quickly added, "Or illegal!"

"You're keeping me hostage, for a start!" Jenny insisted. "And 4.5 billion years ago, your ship tried to destroy our TARDIS. Granted, I'm not up on your current laws, but I'm assuming hostage-taking and attempted murder are still illegal."

"There was no attempted murder!" Kardeni insisted, looking up at her. "And you're not a hostage!" She bunched her hands into fists. "Imagine you were us. Imagine you're part of a heavily regulated industry that relies on time travel to make a profit. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a Time Lord and his two protester friends show up at a crucial temporal point — in an untrackable ship — and refuse to tell us what they've done. But then they go to the present, still tell us nothing, and wreck all our systems."

"But...!"

"We've got a coral invasion going on 430 million years ago," said Kardeni. "It's ravaged our ecosystem and wiped out dozens of species. But we couldn't stop the coral from spreading, because... what do you know? It's telepathic coral. Possibly sentient." She glared at Jenny. "It's almost like someone showed up 4.5 billion years ago with a TARDIS and infected our planet with an invasive species."

"That's absurd! We didn't go near enough to infect your planet!" Jenny insisted. "I've heard Stenman and Hoyer have their own TARDIS. Maybe _that's_ what's infected your planet." She crossed her arms. "Maybe they did it on purpose, so they could build more TARDISes!"

Kardeni sighed, then pulled up a document and showed it to Jenny. It was a full analysis of the coral. And although it did look suspiciously like TARDIS coral... the moment it was exposed to the time vortex, it died.

Which would make it pretty useless for ships.

"There are a lot of people working here, Jenny," Kardeni said, snapping her fingers so the holograms disappeared. "What happens to us if you shut this place down and cause a huge scandal? We'll have a black mark on our records forever. No job, no money, no health insurance, no ability to pay the mortgage. We've got kids. We've got bills. We've got lives."

Jenny wasn't really sure what to say to this.

"So maybe Mr. Stenman and Mr. Hoyer overreacted, when they saw you," said Kardeni. "Maybe they panicked. That's on us. But before you start going around calling us criminals, try to think of it from our perspective."

The door banged open, and a man with a tie and rolled up shirtsleeves entered the room, carrying an empty commuter cup. He stopped, as he noticed Kardeni. "Oh, sorry. I didn't realize we had a 'special visitor'." He eyed Jenny suspiciously, as if he were expecting her to throw a stapler at him.

Kardeni looked up, smiled, then waved him inside. "She's one of the nice ones. Peer pressure, I expect."

Jenny frowned. Peer pressure?

The man laughed, walking over to the coffee pots. "Christina was like that, once. Now, she's got a PhD and the desk beside mine." He winked at Jenny. "Don't worry. You're not going to get thrown into jail or anything, when you get home. Just keep in mind that you've got yourself a bad group of friends, and the next time they drag you into something, you may not be able to get out of it."

Jenny took another sip of tea. She wanted to start shouting that she wasn't a protester and there was something really sketchy going on here... but she decided to stay quiet and just listen.

She'd learn more from listening than arguing, anyways.

The man poured himself a cup of coffee, then turned and held the pot out to Kardeni — who was back working. She smiled at him. "Thanks, Branden. I'm fine."

"Oh. Yeah. Should have remembered." Branden set the coffee pot back on the burner, then reached for some creamer and sugars. "Oh, by the way — Zeera?" He dumped the extras into his coffee, and stirred them around with a stirrer straw. "Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but... we've got another Galia-3 problem on our hands."

Kardeni slapped her hand against her head. "Oh, God, not again. The orbits aren't even close!" She turned in her chair, to face Branden. "Where is it?"

"Sector three," said Branden, sipping at his coffee. "A few dozen, this time."

Kardeni made a sweep with her arm, and all the holographic projections disappeared. "Well, there goes my day." She sighed, getting up from the table. She looked over at Jenny, trying to decide what to do. "Branden — any interest in giving our friend, here, a tour of the facility?"

Jenny jumped up. "Actually, I'm kind of interested in this... Galia-3 thing." She shot them her friendliest smile. "I'd like to help, if I can. Make up for some of that overtime you have to work now."

Kardeni shook her head. "As always, this falls on my shoulders — and mine alone." She tucked back in her chair. "I don't have a clue how I'm going to fix it, though. Like I said, the orbits aren't even close. It doesn't make sense."

"Well, I'll cover for you with the kid," Branden offered. "And if you're still stumped after a few hours, I'm sure Stenman would be willing to let someone else take a look behind one or two of those 'magic doors' of his."

Kardeni quirked an eyebrow at him, then shook her head, and left the room.

Branden looked after her, frowning. Sighed. "I always feel kind of bad for her," Branden told Jenny. "She does everything around here, you know. Devotes her life to this company. Hours and hours of overtime. And somehow, she's still friendly to everyone. Even the janitors!" He shook his head. "And now, we get to watch Agent Lantro shout at Stenman and Hoyer about how they _have_ to let him talk to Zeera — like he thinks she's some kind of criminal or something!"

Right... to Jenny, that sounded more like Agent Lantro wanted to help her out. At least, that was Jenny's current theory.

"What's Galia-3?" Jenny asked.

Branden blinked. Then, he gave a nervous laugh. "Glitch in the cameras. Forget it."

"And you didn't ask the IT department to fix it?" Jenny put her hands on her hips. "You skipped to the secretary of the head of the company?"

Branden fidgeted, increasingly uneasy with this conversation. "She's... very talented. Friendly."

"And not a criminal — you said." Jenny sighed, brushing back her pony tail. "You two also said something about 'the orbits.' So that means Galia-3's another planet."

"This is the Galia system," said Branden, flatly, taking another sip of his coffee. "All the planets are numbered like that — Galias 1 to 12."

"Twelve?" Jenny raised her eyebrows. "I saw this system from above. It's _never_ had 12 planets. 11 pre-smash. Ten post-smash. Never 12." She frowned, visualizing the solar system in her head. "Come to think of it, Galia-4 was the third planet from the sun. So unless Galia-3 was the one you smashed into..."

"Nope, that was Galia-11." Branden gave her a friendly smile, and headed to the door. "How about I give you that tour that Zeera recommended?"

Jenny hesitated. What was it about Galia-3 that even Branden wanted covered up? Was this what the Doctor was referring to, when he asked her to snoop?

Fine, then.

Time to snoop.

"Tour sounds great," Jenny said, giving him a smile. "How about we start with Sector 3?"


	9. Chapter 9

For a while, they remained silent inside the car. Iporil even seemed to curl up in the seat and go back to sleep.

Yimi turned on Seo, and ripped the gag off her mouth.

"Ow!" Seo yelped.

Yimi shushed her, sternly. Glanced at her sleeping brother. Then, in a whisper, demanded, "Why?"

Seo blinked. "Why what?"

"Those Hunters didn't care about you when we were first captured," said Yimi. "But you..." She shook her head. "I don't understand."

"You were scared," Seo said. "You didn't want to lose your brother. I wanted to help."

Yimi blinked. Then laughed uneasily. "No. No, I don't get scared. You're confused." She glanced over towards the front. "Gevry can tell you. I am the chosen of Abozalu! It is my duty to lead the people in revolt, so that we may free Him and bring Him His holy relic."

Seo glanced back behind her. Then, even quieter, asked, "You're in love with him, aren't you?"

"Abozalu?"

"Gevry McMann."

For a few long moments, Yimi said nothing. Her feathers bristled and ruffled in an awkward, uneasy way.

"He's lying to you," Seo said. She sighed, then muttered, "Everyone's probably been lying to you. I don't even know the full extent. I'm still working it out."

Yimi looked away. "For a long time, I thought I was nothing. I thought — there was just no place in this world for someone like me. The High Priest puts to death all who hear the voice of Abozalu — except himself. But he didn't know about me."

"You mean you get visions?" Seo asked. "Like what I've been getting?"

"No — I mean the voice of Abozalu is within me," said Yimi. She put her hand to her head. "His voice is a battle hymn. His words translate all to the tongue of Abozalu. His faith flows through me."

"Translate all to...?" Seo drifted off. Her eyes went wide. "Oh, no."

"Everyone hears the music, of course," said Yimi. "And we all have the gift of Abozalu's tongue. But only _I_ have heard the holy words — 'Take up arms. Destroy the High Priest. Purify the ground with the blood of the blasphemers.' It is like a constant drumbeat, driving me ever onwards to revolution."

"But that's..." Seo sucked in a sharp breath. "It can't be _his_ TARDIS. Can it? Or maybe this is just some sort other kind of TARDIS that really likes it when people kill each other..."

Yimi shook her head. "What is 'TARDIS'? Abozalu does not show me the meaning of this word."

"A ship," said Seo. "A Time Lord ship. Yimi — I think there's a TARDIS buried on this planet. In fact, I think your people evolved right on top of it and became connected to it. You can all pick it up — but some can pick up more than others." She wriggled in her handcuffs. "Look, I'm clearly no threat to you. Can't you let me out of these? My wrists are killing me."

Yimi hesitated. But took a key out of her pocket and unlocked the handcuffs.

Seo breathed a sigh of relief, shaking out her wrists. "Thank you!"

"You lie," Yimi insisted, her voice very low. "Abozalu is not a ship. He is God." She clenched her hands into fists. "Gevry says..."

"Gevry is working to his own agenda," Seo said. "Like I said — he's lying to you. Manipulating you."

Yimi distorted her face, so her tusks moved beneath her nose, making her every breath whistle angrily. "You don't understand the meaning of true love."

"And neither does he!" Seo insisted, pointing at McMann.

"You should listen to her," came Iporil, from the corner.

Yimi and Seo both jumped a bit. Glanced over at him, where he had woken up.

"I know you always say you'd trust him with the planet, Yimi." Iporil pointed a thumb at the back of McMann's head in the front of the car. "Thing is — you are. You'll be a puppet ruler, doing only what the humans allow. And if you don't, the Earth fleet will...!"

"There isn't a fleet," Seo cut in. She gave a small, sad laugh. "He's not even military! His costume's from the wrong century, for a start." She sat down on the seat, massaging her wrists. Her eyes were focused in the distance — at nothing. "No, it's more than that, Iporil. There's something _really_ wrong here. I can feel it — like when the Master took over the Earth using Archangel. It's like we're being manipulated somehow, except we can't see it." She hissed, as her wrists stung. "Mutajar said that. She said there was something hidden that was worse than all the rest of Stenman-Hoyer's secrets put together. But then Mutajar came here, and _she_ lied to you guys, too..."

Yimi stared out the window, no longer willing to listen to Seo.

"There has to be an explanation for all this," Seo insisted, dropping into deep thought. "I just have to find it."

* * *

From the front seat, McMann glanced back and forth between the terrain in front of him and the display where he was still trying to contact the Main Complex. Finally, a chime sounded, and McMann breathed a sigh of relief as he was finally put through.

"Zeera, thank God you got my message," said McMann, the moment he was picked up. "Look, about the..."

"Security Officer McMann," a voice cut in, sharply.

McMann paused, his jaw dropping open. He knew the voice, of course, from press conferences and media events and company parties, but he'd never actually spoken to Stenman directly before. He glanced down at the video display — it was Stenman alright. "Mr. Stenman, sir. I didn't..."

"I've been meaning to contact you for a while now," Stenman cut in, making a gesture with his hands and pulling up a hovering scrolling data file in midair. "I've read your latest report. And, to be honest, I'm starting to think Mrs. Kardeni hasn't been keeping me entirely abreast of the situation." He made a gesture, and the report pages auto-flipped to about half-way through. "What's all this about a Great Relic?" He glanced at McMann through the monitor. " _We_ didn't put that in, right?"

"No, Mr. Stenman, sir," McMann said. "Not from what I remember."

"So where did it come from?!" Stenman shoved his hand through the report and it broke apart into holographic dots and scattered. "This species has a life of its own. First, we get reports of missing or stolen stock. Then mining production's down. And now, this!" He slammed a hand down on the desk. "I got clients out there wanting 'Purple', McMann. Have we found it, yet?"

McMann winced. "No, Mr. Stenman. I'm afraid we have not..."

"That's right — you haven't," Stenman snapped. "That's why I'm talking to you directly. Mrs. Kardeni says we can't axe the species, because your team found something big. But at the rate things are going, I wouldn't be surprised if that was all just a lie — and she was really acting on orders from Lantro."

McMann glanced down at the screen. "Mrs. Kardeni is correct. We _did_ find something big. We didn't want to say _what_ until we were sure — but as of this morning, we're pretty sure."

Stenman leaned back against his desk, grumbling but perhaps a little less suspicious. "And? What's down there?"

"A 'Magenta Dragon'."

McMann had expected a big reaction to this. It was the most exciting thing McMann had ever thought to find.

But Stenman just crossed his arms. "That's it?"

"Mr. Stenman, I really think..."

"Oh, you really think, do you?" Stenman threw up his arms. "That's great. I'll just go tell R&D that you 'really think'. I'm sure they'll be so grateful you solved all their problems for them."

"But..."

"McMann, you're clearly not getting my point, so let me spell it out for you," Stenman cut in. "Nothing you find now will be enough to surpass the problems we're having due to the Patasi stealing the stock. _Nothing_!" He pointed at McMann through the camera. "And I'm not just talking about 'Purple', either. We haven't gotten an ounce of gold from you in months. Not an emerald, a ruby, a diamond. Nothing. You think that's not going to turn some heads? A mining company that somehow keeps making a profit even though they haven't sold a mineral or a gemstone in months?" He ran his hands down his face. "Christ, what a mess."

McMann grimaced, not sure what to say.

"The girl," said Stenman, at last.

"Yes. I have her." McMann tried to root the feed through to Stenman's side, but the camera didn't seem to be working right. The girl kept flickering in and out, sometimes a ghostly image and sometimes not there at all. "Oh." He scrambled to fix it, but couldn't. "Sorry, Mr. Stenman, sir. I don't know what's going on. I'll have to get the equipment looked at."

"Don't bother, I can see enough." Stenman analyzed her carefully. "Have you questioned her? Who is she? What is she? Is she a Time Lord?"

"Is she a...?" McMann swallowed. He knew she had a double pulse but he had always assumed the Time Lords were long since dead and gone. "I haven't had a chance to question her yet. I'll run a species scan for you right now." McMann pressed a few buttons on his dashboard. Glanced down. "Negative. Not a Time Lord."

"Then what?"

McMann ran a wider scan. Frowned. Thumped the monitor and tried again. Same result. "I don't know. It's just an error message." He returned his eyes to the front windshield. "Yimi told me she was part-human."

"And Yimi's... which one?" Stenman asked, calling back up the report and skimming sections. "The fanatic?"

"Yes, Mr. Stenman," said McMann. "Things are still on-target for that operation. We should be able to manage a takeover shortly — and the new regime will enable us to double our efficiency. And locate our missing stock." He hesitated. Then added, "Actually, I didn't get a chance to tell Mrs. Kardeni, but I identified a subversive element here. Dr. Faye Mutajar. I think she works for us. I was going to report it to HR, but..."

Stenman crossed his arms. "But?"

"She was killed this morning, Mr. Stenman," McMann admitted. "Hunters."

"Doesn't rain but it pours." Stenman gestured with his hand and the report disappeared. "Write up a death report and send it to Hoyer. He'll handle the cover-up."

McMann nodded, firmly. "And what about the girl?"

"The girl..." Stenman sighed, leaning against his desk and bowing his head, deep in thought. "Yes, well, she's part of an even bigger problem." He snapped his eyes back up. "Agent Lantro isn't there yet?"

McMann almost stopped breathing for a moment. "No. He's not..." A thousand panicked thoughts raced through his mind. "Oh, God. Is he going to be?"

"Imminently," said Stenman, "in the company of a Time Lord calling himself 'the Doctor'. I imagine they'll be looking for the girl." He began pacing the room, his head down. "I think it goes without saying, Security Officer McMann, that we need to prepare for their arrival — and manage their visit — very, _very_ carefully."

"Sweep some stuff under the rug, you mean." McMann took in a deep breath, trying to think of all the stuff he'd need to clean up. He swallowed. "It's... a lot of sweeping."

"And not a lot of time — I'm aware of that," Stenman said. He sighed. "What makes this really tricky is that there's a fault in our systems. The Doctor has to fix the fault first, before we can kill him. And if we kill the girl too early..."

"He might just decide not to fix the fault at all," McMann understood. He took this all in with a small nod. "What would you like me to do? Keep the girl prisoner?"

"Use the girl to separate the Doctor from Lantro," said Stenman. "I want to know _everything_ Lantro does. _Everything_. What he's said, touched, done, looked at." He turned to face McMann. "And if there's any indication he's so much as uttered a word to Mrs. Kardeni — you get your team to contact me _at once_. You got that?"

"Understood," said McMann. "And the Doctor and the girl?"

A small smile spread up Stenman's lips. "Well, the books all say the Time Lords are a dead race. Who are we to say they're wrong?"

"But Agent Lantro..."

"You leave Agent Lantro to me," said Stenman. "As soon as we find out what he wants, I'm sure Mrs. Kardeni can talk him around to our point of view. Women are very persuasive." He folded his hands behind his back. "Like your 'Yimi'."

McMann almost jumped out of his seat.

"Well, then," Stenman muttered. "Seems my secretary really does tell me everything." He headed back over to his desk. "I trust we understand each other?"

"Yes, Mr. Stenman, sir," said McMann.

"If you do get into a situation where you have to kill them all early to keep the Agency from knowing the truth," said Stenman, "be sure to keep Lantro alive. The last thing we want are Time Agent investigators combing through all our affairs."

"Understood."

"Oh, and — one more thing." Stenman sat down behind his desk, leaning back in his chair. "The girl has some kind of special key on her. Something that unlocks dimensions. See if you can't find a way to get that off of her while you're waiting for the Doctor to show up."

McMann frowned. But nodded.

"Tricky day, isn't it?" Stenman gave a dull laugh. "Well, we'll get through it. I'm enacting Protocol Z, by the way, so you can let your team know that they may be an hour or two late getting home today. Assure them they'll get triple pay for sticking it out."

"You're locking us down?" McMann said.

"Just a precaution to stop the Doctor and his friends from escaping," Stenman replied. "When I return from my sales call — assuming everything Time Lord related has been taken care of — I'll lift it. An added incentive for you."

"But..." McMann started.

But Stenman had already hung up.


	10. Chapter 10

The friendly employee, Branden, had been eager to show Jenny everywhere that _wasn't_ Sector 3. He even took her down to the mailroom rather than show her Sector 3.

Jenny huffed. Enough! She picked up a map from the mailroom, and ran off.

She slowed as she arrived at Sector 3. Blinked. Rubbed her eyes. Still there. Definitely not a camera problem. Not a problem with her eyes, either.

The far end of this corridor was filled with ghosts.

Jenny stepped up to one, studying it. It was the ghost of an unknown species — she'd never seen the like. Feathered, but with small tusks on its face, and human-looking hands sporting six fingers.

Jenny reached out to touch the apparition.

Before she got the chance, someone grabbed her by the arm and yanked her away. "Really, _really_ bad idea."

Jenny spun around to face an out-of-breath Branden, clutching her arm in a death-grip. As one of the ghosts walked towards them, Branden shoved Jenny out of the way. Then turned and ran, dragging her after him.

"You shouldn't have come," Branden huffed, gasping for air. "Another hour or two, and Zeera will have it sorted."

Jenny yanked her arm out of his grip. "So... what? Galia-3's a ghost planet?" She stopped running. Crossed her arms. "Or was the planet you collided with Galia-4 actually inhabited?"

Branden skidded to a stop. Sighed, turning around. "You really want the truth?"

Jenny quirked an eyebrow at him.

"They're _my_ ghosts," Branden admitted, thudding a hand against his chest. " _My_ fault. Something from my computer has infected the main systems. Zeera's been covering up for me, while I try to find some way to fix it."

Jenny frowned. " _Your_ fault? How are ghosts...?"

Branden pointed down the hall. "The only place those creatures exist," he said, "is on the hard drive of my computer. They never evolved. _I_ should know."

A chill ran down Jenny's spine. "Because you stopped them from evolving."

"I wrote the report about their speciation and where it might lead," Branden confirmed, lowering his hand. "Recommended the best way for the company to avoid the extra regulations that accompany the evolution of sentient species. That used to be enough for the Agency — but not anymore. Zeera keeps asking me for more and more detail. Variational genetic forecasting, cross-breeding potentials, computer modeling, inherent mining potential..." His hands were shaking. "I've still got the 3D models of the different possible species on my computer." He nodded at the ghosts. "One of them looks like the ghosts."

Jenny nodded slowly. "So... why's it a 'Galia-3 problem'?"

"It only happens when Galia-3's orbit brings it close to Galia-4." Branden hesitated. "Well, until today." He held up his hands. "And before you ask — no, I don't get why, either."

"But Kardeni does?" Jenny guessed.

"She says she does, but she doesn't." Branden laughed. "She's got this crazy theory about gravity pockets and tidal patterns. Anyone with a basic science degree could debunk it in seconds."

"So she gives you a stupid explanation she knows you'll never buy," Jenny clarified, "then unlocks one of Stenman's 'magic doors', fiddles with a bunch of secret systems you can't access... and the ghosts miraculously disappear?"

Branden fidgeted uneasily. He clearly didn't want to think about this too hard.

"And why would Time Agency regulations need you to figure out the mining potential of a possible species?" Jenny went on. "Doesn't that sound sort of dodgy?"

Branden brushed it aside with his hand. "Probably just... you know... to make sure we're not producing slaves. Or whatever." He shifted from foot to foot. "Look, I'm not a lawyer..."

"Neither am I," Jenny said. "But I know the difference between a ghost and a holographic computer glitch." She turned around, glancing down the hall. "And those are definitely ghosts." She thought a moment longer. Then, to Branden, "That geologist Seo and I met in the field said that all mining operations had stopped in that sector. But there was mining stuff just lying around, abandoned."

"We cycle mining sites to allow for vegetation regrowth and..." Branden began.

"And just abandon pickaxes and ore carts?" Jenny asked.

Branden stared at her. Shook his head. "Pickaxes? Ore carts? This is the 53rd century. We don't use any of that stuff anymore."

Jenny sighed. "Yeah? Well someone sure does." She raced past Branden. "Where's the nearest teleport? I've gotta check out a hunch."

* * *

When McMann stopped the car and let the others out of the back, for a few moments, Seo could only stare, jaw dropping, at the world around her. It was a mine — there were mining carts and pickaxes and dust all around her — but nothing like any mine she'd ever seen before.

Instead of a mining shack, there was a giant cathedral, complete with flying buttresses and stained glass windows. All around her, Seo could hear the chorus of beautiful voices, singing in tones the human voice box couldn't replicate, their music promising salvation for Abozalu.

"Oh no..." Seo breathed, as they stepped away from the vehicle. She watched as one of the miners with an ore-cart rushed past them, chanting a holy litany beneath his breath. He stopped beside another member of the same species, who had a clipboard and a pen-looking thing. The miner bowed in such a way as to reveal a set of rosy-colored feathers beneath his elbow, and the man with the clipboard did the same thing. Then, gently and ever so reverently, the miner began lifting things out of his ore cart, setting each rocky-looking lump onto a conveyor belt.

In fact, _everyone_ working on the conveyor belt treated the ore as if it were sacred and precious, even as it moved down the line and they separated the valuable parts from the less valuable parts. As if the items upon the conveyor belt were holy.

Except they weren't holy.

And they weren't just gemstones or minerals.

"This is their church," Seo breathed. Goosebumps pricked her arms as she shuddered. "They worship Abbu-Dabbu by mining from dawn to dusk. Mining..."

Her eyes remained fixed on the conveyor belt.

"Abozalu," Yimi corrected, sternly.

Iporil ruffled the feathers on his face to adjust his eyes to the bright sunlight. "Don't judge us, human," he said to Seo, a little coldly. "Abozalu is sacred to all the Patasi. You wouldn't understand."

One of the Patasi that was clothed in a white tunic with gold embroidery grabbed Iporil from the group, berating him for being lazy and dragging him into the mines. Seo was surprised that no one did the same for Yimi — but when McMann approached from the car and took Yimi's hand in his own, it became pretty obvious why.

"The Devastation is where Abozalu fell to Earth," Seo said, turning on McMann, her eyes blazing. She pointed at Yimi. "That's what you said earlier, Yimi." Her eyes flicked back to McMann, her hands bunching into fists. "A religion that believes God crashed here billions of years ago — and it's their duty to dig him out by mining incessantly." Her eyes narrowed, as McMann looked away. "Now, isn't that a coincidence?"

In the background, the choir sang about how Abozalu fell through the sky and crashed onto the planet, sinking through the molten ground. He tried to use his holy powers to break free, but those powers crystalized and hardened inside the rock, and that is how Abozalu became trapped and separated from his powers.

"It's what they believe in, and I respect it," said McMann, unable to meet Seo's eyes. He held Yimi's hand a little tighter, as he turned to lead Yimi into the church. "It's not my place to judge the validity of other people's religions."

Seo stormed after McMann. "No. It's just your job to make sure they never find out who started that religion in the first place!"

"That's utterly absurd," Yimi dismissed. "No one..."

McMann had already dropped Yimi's hand and pulled out his gun, spinning around and pressing the barrel against Seo's forehead.

"One more word," he hissed at her, "and I shoot."

Yimi's jaw dropped as she looked between Seo and McMann.

The choir, in the background, sang about how Abozalu used the last of his divine powers to create life upon the planet, in the hopes that someone might free him someday, and he might reward them for their service and their faith.

"One word about what?" asked Seo, her voice low. "About how the SHC emblem on your uniform stands for Stenman-Hoyer Company — a mining company? About how that mining company has manipulated every single lifeform on this planet, from the moment it was born to the moment it...?"

McMann fired a shot just over her head — which slammed into and vaporized the wood from a mining cart, leaving only the fried, charred metal.

"I said," McMann gritted through his teeth, "shut up."

Seo glanced over at Yimi. She seemed utterly bewildered by what McMann was doing.

"If I don't know what I'm talking about, Yimi," Seo pointed out, "then why's he threatening to shoot me?" She frowned, suddenly curious. "Actually, come to think of it, why haven't you killed me yet? I've been annoying enough."

Yimi held out a hand. "Gevry, you can't be..."

"I think," McMann cut in, sharply, "that this girl is in need of _a Doctor_ to cure her of her delusions." He tried to shoot Yimi a reassuring smile, but it seemed forced. He turned back to Seo, his face filled with threat. "Good thing there's one already on the way. Your ranting and raving is just making sure I've got a full work load the moment he shows up."

Seo suddenly went deathly quiet. She kept her glare fixed on McMann, but didn't say another word.

Of course the Doctor would be following her! Why hadn't she thought of that? Stupid, stupid Seo!

Yimi tugged McMann by the sleeve, harshly, and whispered something to him that sounded a little angry and a bit snippy. McMann said nothing for a second, then, a little sheepishly, holstered his gun. Yimi whispered something else to him, but he just gave a small shake of his head.

"Not now," McMann said, stepping past her and grabbing Seo by the arm. "Later. I have to take care of some things, first."

He tried to drag Seo back to the car, but Yimi got in the way. She was glaring at McMann, with just the merest hint of suspicion inside her eyes. "If you say she's delusional, Gevry, I believe you." She pointed at the cathedral. "But she has received visions from Abozalu. Take her into the cathedral and allow Abozalu's great power to enter her soul. Then she will be on our side." Yimi looked into his face, but saw only cold determination there. She grabbed him a little tighter, staring deep into his eyes. "Or is she right? Do you dare not take her into the cathedral because you fear Abozalu will expose _you_?"

"Yimi..." McMann started.

"She saved my life, Gevry," Yimi cut in, harshly. "She saved my brother."

McMann hesitated.

Yimi did not. She firmly stood her ground.

Finally, McMann sighed. "Oh, all right. I'll take her into the cathedral." He grabbed Seo and dragged her after him. To Seo, he warned, "Don't resist. I'm doing you a favor, here."

Seo didn't resist. In fact, she seemed perfectly content to follow him under her own power. "Anything you say! I wanted a chat, anyways."

They walked into the cathedral, and Yimi distorted her face so that her tusks shifted in front of her nose, creating a small whistling sound as she breathed in and out. The tusks seemed to operate as a sort of natural air filtration system, inside the sooty and dusty cathedral.

Seo just started coughing.

McMann ignored her. Instead, he turned to Yimi. "I'll take her somewhere private — for an up-close-and-personal with Abozalu," he said, his voice a lot gentler. "You should go, before you're missed."

Yimi didn't seem inclined to move. She kept glancing down at McMann's holstered gun.

"She's nobody, Yimi," McMann said in a low whisper. " _You're_ important. She's not. Just... forget her. Pretend she never came here or said a word. Please."

Yimi said nothing for a long moment, her eyes shifting between McMann and Seo.

Then, finally, she gave him a peck on the lips and a small smile. "I trust you," she whispered. She turned to Seo. "I will pray for you."

Then she turned, and walked into the center of the cathedral — where the entry to the mine shaft lay. She joined the crowd of her own people already hustling around the area, and McMann turned away, to deal with his prisoner.

Seo wasn't looking at the mine shaft. She was staring past the mine shaft and the Patasi, at the stained glass window on the far wall — the one that showed a giant, godly-looking Patasi creature chained to a rock, his wrists and ankles bloody where the chains had snaked out of the rock and bitten into his flesh, while the landscape behind him was all fire and darkness and death.

"But that's like in my...!" Seo looked down at her own wrists and shuddered. "What is going on, here?"

McMann shoved her forwards. "Get moving," he hissed at her, drawing his gun and pointing it at the back of her head, "or I really will kill you, here and now."

He didn't look back, as he marched Seo out of the main chapel and into one of the side-rooms — which was easier to secure. Perhaps, if he had looked, he would have noticed one Patasi break away from the crowd near the mine shaft, and creep after McMann and Seo, taking great care to be silent.

Yimi.

Yimi did trust McMann. She kept telling herself that, as she silently followed him. She repeated it, even as she watched him shut and lock the door to the small side room — and she crept over and placed her ear at the key-hole to listen.

Then she heard their words.

And she realized she was right to doubt.


	11. Chapter 11

"Badger-Prometheus!" the Doctor cried, circling the base of a metallic sculpture of a badger chained to a rock, surrounded by flames. A flying cat landed lazily on the chained badger's stomach and curled up to take a nap. The Doctor laughed. "Complete with liver-eating flying cat-bird!"

Agent Lantro crossed his arms, not bothering to hide his boredom. "Does this matter?"

The Doctor hopped back, crouching down and leaning way over to his left — trying to see it from a different angle. "It's just odd, is all. Why Badger-Prometheus?" He tilted his head, then threw out his arms. "Wait just a minute! Hold the phones! Now it looks more like a beaver than a badger!"

"Are all Time Lords this insane, or just you?" Lantro demanded. He turned away, reaching into his pocket. "Actually — why am I even still here? You're clearly out of your mind, and I have better..."

"Dalekanium!" the Doctor shouted, jumping to his feet.

Lantro froze. Slowly, he turned around. "Huh?"

The Doctor knocked on the base of the sculpture — and the flying cat hissed. "The sculpture. Haven't you noticed? It's made from Dalekanium."

"Made from...?" Lantro walked over to it, touching it. " _This_ is Dalekanium? Seriously?" Leaned down. Squinted. "That's not what they called it on their paperwork." He glanced back at the Doctor. "So is this a problem? I mean, aside from being associated with the most evil race in the universe, does Dalekanium have any special properties I should be worried about them mining for, or...?"

"Oh, loads! Loads!" the Doctor said. He began listing it out on his fingers. "Immune to lasers and bombs, attracts gamma radiation, tends to make very nasty weapons. None of that's very nice." He leaned down, staring at it. "Not very nice at all..."

He frowned.

Then the Doctor jumped up. "Do you get a lot of Time War survivors coming through here?"

"Actually, yes, now that you mention it," Lantro said. He scratched his head. "At least, Zeera says so."

"Who?"

"Zeera Kardeni?" Lantro, seeing the Doctor's blank look, waved the question off. "Sorry, I assumed you knew her. She's a friend of mine. Big history buff. She's the reason I asked you if you fought in... Well, it probably doesn't matter." He turned back to the Dalekanium structure. "Why? Is there something related to the Time War here?"

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. "You could say that." He pulled out his sonic screwdriver, scanning it through the air. "Let's see, now... Instability is a bit over..." He spun around, and pointed behind him. "...there-ish!" The Doctor waved at Lantro, as he strode off in the direction he'd pointed, tucking his sonic back in his jacket pocket. "Come along, Lantro!"

Lantro sighed, but hurried to catch up. "Are you planning to actually explain any of...?"

"There's a thick vein of Dalekanium that encircles this whole planet," the Doctor guessed. "And, somewhere nearby it, there's another layer they'd find useful. Fossilized coral? Maybe a layer of limestone containing limited regenerative properties?"

"Regenerative properties?" Lantro asked.

"Very, very, _very_ limited, for a human," the Doctor qualified. "Probably more useful in applications than on its own. You know — inside medical devices. That sort of thing." He tapped his lips. "I should probably look into that." Dismissed it with the wave of his hand. "Any rate. Dalekanium layer. Fossilized TARDIS coral layer. And a heapin' helpin' of Time War survivors turning up. Isn't it obvious?"

Lantro gave the Doctor a completely blank look.

"No? Nothing? Not even a clue?" The Doctor sighed. "Always good to see the Agency's hiring real talent these days." He grinned and leapt forwards, pointing. "Aha! Cliff! Up ahead!" He spun around, walking backwards to face Lantro. "Any chance you'd have a very long, very unbreakable rope I could borrow?"

Ten minutes later, and the Doctor and Lantro were dangling over a cliff edge, held up only by a very long, very thin, and thoroughly unbreakable rope. The Doctor kept studying the rock face, then shimmying down the rope a bit, and studying the next geological layer. For some reason, he was doing it one handed — his other hand occupied with holding the sonic screwdriver.

"You've got a death wish, you know that?" said Lantro. He was clutching the rope with both hands — still not used to doing this without at least a harness.

"Time Lord," the Doctor supplied, unhelpfully, as he shimmied down the rope again. "More lives than a cat!" He scanned the next layer, frowned, then shook his head. "Nope. Not this one either. Down a layer!"

He shimmied down again.

Lantro followed him — much slower and more carefully. "What are you looking for? More of that metamorphic rock from earlier?" He glanced down at his wrist. "Because, in case you don't remember, my vortex manipulator is currently out of commission."

The Doctor tested the next layer with his sonic. "Yes, yes, but everything's becoming increasingly unstable. So not a problem." He shook his head, then shimmied down again. Called out, "You know, the entire geological history of this planet is completely different than it was when I landed."

"Is that important?" Lantro called down.

"Only for the intellectually curious." The Doctor shimmied down a little further, then grinned. "Aha! Found our exit point!" He adjusted the settings of his sonic screwdriver with his teeth, then pointed it at the wall again. "Right, then! Lantro, grab hold of my arm and don't let go. No vortex manipulator — so could be a bumpy ride."

Lantro, a bit skeptical, climbed down and grabbed hold of the Doctor's arm. "Doctor, you realize this is impossible, right?"

"Yes, but I like impossible!" the Doctor said. He pointed his sonic at the rock, and activated it. Then pushed off the rock and swung them into it. "Geronimo!"

And they vanished.

* * *

They reappeared in midair, beside the exact same cliff. Lantro shrieked, as he felt them both falling, and reached for the rope — except there was no rope. The rope hadn't come with them.

They both screamed, as they fell down the cliff and towards the sea.

* * *

Jenny kept turning around, staring at the circle of teleport doors surrounding her. They were each labeled with longitude and latitude — except one red door, which was completely unlabeled. Branden kept waving her over to one of the teleports... but Jenny ignored him.

She wanted to know what was behind the red door.

Branden leapt out and grabbed her by the arm, yanking her away from it. "Off-limits."

"I like off-limits." Jenny yanked her arm free, then raced over to the door, and forced the casing off the card-swiper to the right. "Quantum-phased zirconal temporal lock. Nice!" She began fiddling with it. "Took me forever to work out how to get around these."

Branden rushed over and grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her away. "No, really. It's off-limits." He pointed to the teleporter he'd found before. "That's the one you want. That takes you to the impact crater you mentioned."

"Yeah, but the off-limits one is way more interesting." Jenny squirmed out of his grip and darted back to the door, continuing to pick the lock. "What's back there, anyways?"

Branden shifted, uneasily. "I... don't know. Only red-badged employees are allowed back there."

The lock beeped, something shifted inside the door mechanism, and the red door swung open. Jenny looked back at Branden. "I think that means you just got upgraded to red." She gestured for him to go first. "Aren't you curious?"

Branden hesitated.

Then, finally, "Oh, to hell with it. Let's go."

* * *

The room Branden and Jenny entered looked identical to the last teleport room — except all the walls were painted red. Branden and Jenny spent a few seconds just turning around, analyzing everything there, trying to find any differences.

But there were none.

Just the wall color.

"Even the coordinates are the same," Branden noted, his eyes fixed on the inscriptions above each teleport. He turned to Jenny. "What is this? A class thing? The upper management doesn't want to teleport with us plebs?"

Jenny stepped towards the red replica of the teleport Branden had pointed to earlier. Yanked the front panel off, analyzing the wiring. A small holographic readout popped up, giving her diagnostic details. She deftly hacked the system, eyes fixed on the readout.

Then she froze.

"Wait a second." She leapt backwards — nearly colliding with Branden — then rushed out the door and back to the room with the first set of teleporters. She yanked the front panel off the silver version and hacked into that one. She stared at the display, again. "The coordinates _aren't_ the same."

Branden stepped forwards, glancing over her shoulder. "Yes, they are." He pointed to the first set of numbers. "See? That's exactly what the red one said for longitude and latitude."

"Yeah, but that's only looking at longitude and latitude." Jenny shifted the display. "When looking at the five-dimensional coordinates, you can see — they don't match."

Branden frowned.

"Which means... we've only got one choice." Jenny grinned, rushing back into the red teleport room. "If you know where the silver teleport goes — let's find out where the red one takes us!"

Branden raced after her. No way was he missing this. "Hey, wait up!"

She was already stepping into the red teleporter as he arrived. He could hear it whirring and warming up around her.

"There has to be an innocent explanation for this, right?" Branden asked, his heart beating fast. "I mean... you don't think that...?"

"...that Stenman-Hoyer asked you for extra details on those species you created because they wanted to make sure those species _did_ evolve?" Jenny finished for him. "And then the company hid the results behind a red door so you wouldn't see them? Yeah. I do. I just don't know what Galia-3 has to do with it. Maybe that's where this teleport really leads."

"But... but Galia-3's just a gravitational anomaly!" Branden insisted. "There isn't even a planet there!"

Jenny raised her eyebrows, even as the teleporter pinged that it was at full power. "I'd love to hear the explanation for that one — but I don't have time." She waved at him. "Wish me luck!"

The teleporter activated.

A bright light encompassed Jenny on the teleport platform.

Then it faded.

Jenny was still there.

"What?" Jenny stepped out, turning around to stare at it. She kicked it. "Work, you stupid machine!"

Holographic text began to circle the top of the room. "Protocol Z activated. Teleports deactivated. We apologize for the inconvenience."

Jenny's eyes skimmed the text, growing more and more worried. "Protocol Z. That sounds ominous."

"Not really," Branden sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Just Stenman and Hoyer micro-managing. They've got a whole series of protocols in place for when they're both out on sales calls." He hesitated. "Although... I don't remember any of the other protocols shutting down the teleports." He grimaced. "I wonder how the employees in the field are going to get home."

Jenny had bigger things to worry about. She turned back to Branden. "Galia-3. You said it wasn't a planet. Just a gravitational anomaly."

"That's right," said Branden. He shrugged. "It has the gravitational pull of a planet, but when you go there to see for yourself... there's no planet. No nothing. Just empty space." He laughed. "Oddest thing. You'd expect at least a planetoid to start forming in the empty gravitational anomaly. But nope. Nothing. Debris just gets sucked inside... and vanishes."

Jenny crossed her arms. "And you call it Galia-3 because...?"

Branden shrugged. "You'll have to ask Zeera. She's the only one who was around back when they named the planets in this system."

Jenny headed out the door.

Branden chased after her. "Hey! Where are you...?"

"To find a secure communications device," Jenny said, as they left the red room and re-entered the teleport room. "Stenman and Hoyer are both gone. The systems have gone haywire. Ghosts are showing up when they shouldn't be." She glanced back at Branden. "Right now, there's only one person who seems to have any answers. And if she's desperate enough to get help fixing the stuff that's gone wrong... I have a feeling she'll tell us what she knows."


	12. Chapter 12

"What is going on here?" Seo snapped, the moment McMann locked them inside the room. "Yimi loves you. And you've been lying to her and...!"

McMann turned back around, no longer shy about keeping his gun pointed in Seo's face. "Yeah, but she's never gonna find that out — and you're not gonna tell her."

"Why? Because you'll kill me?" Seo folded her arms, confidently. "I don't think so. You need me alive for when the Doctor gets here."

"Because Stenman's pretty much had it with the Patasi as a species," McMann countered, evenly. "He's looking for an excuse to wipe them all out. And you're giving him plenty."

Seo froze. "Wait, what?" She shook her head. "But I thought..."

"The Patasi didn't evolve in quite the way Stenman wanted," said McMann. "He's always hated them. About two months ago, Stenman finally snapped and demanded their extinction. The only reason they're around now is because a group of us have been talking to Stenman's secretary. She's been convincing him not to drop the axe."

Seo stepped back. "Oh."

"Kardeni had Branden — Dr. Ritchering — draw up some specs to prove the Patasi could still be useful miners," McMann went on. "Stenman's agreed to let the species continue, provided we... 'downsize'."

"Downsize," Seo repeated.

McMann said nothing.

Seo shuddered. "You mean culling, don't you? That's why you're trying to put Yimi in power." She clenched her hands into fists, anger overtaking shock. "To get a more fanatical group of miners, and kill off everyone who isn't strong enough to take it! To get your Hunters to do a better job of killing off the lazy!"

"Either a few survive, or no one survives," McMann insisted. "I made my choice."

"And that doesn't bother you? Using Yimi like that?" Seo flung open her hands. "She's in love with you!"

That did make him hesitate a little.

"I've seen the future, McMann," Seo said. "I've been getting these visions. Everybody dies! Stenman pulls the plug. All that's left is a smoking crater and..." She trailed off, as she remembered the stained glass windows. Looked around herself — at the tapestries and paintings on the walls of this room, all depicting the same thing. "Actually — when are we?"

McMann shot her a look. "What's that supposed to mean? Don't you know?!" He gestured around himself. "August 3, 5275."

Seo frowned. That had been the date the TARDIS said they'd landed on, when they first arrived. That meant she hadn't traveled through time. That vision wasn't of the future.

What was it? The past?

And why?

"How could you possibly...?" McMann began — but stopped himself. "No, you know what? I don't have time for this." He stepped forwards so the gun was pointed squarely in her face. "You're carrying a special key with you." He held out a hand. "Give it."

Seo almost stopped breathing. "The...?"

"When Stenman wants something, I deliver," said McMann. "And he wants your dimension key. So either hand it over, or I'll shoot you and take it off your dead body." He paused, then added, "Sorry, but... I've got my orders."

Seo still looked stunned. "But how did he find out about...?" Then, seeing his finger start to press down on the trigger, she held up her hands and gave a quick, "Okay! Okay! Anything you say!"

McMann relaxed a little.

"Dimension key, dimension key..." Seo muttered, rummaging in her pockets. She grabbed something, and her eyes lit up. "Oh, of course!" She yanked out her TARDIS key with the pink bunny key chain and grinned, handing it over to him. "One special dimension-opening super key. At your service!"

He took it from her. Held it up, so it dangled in front of his face. Squinted. "It looks... so normal." He wrapped his hand around it, and a holographic display popped up over his hand, analyzing it. "Metallic composition. 70% steel. 20% copper. No special dimensional properties. Brand: Yale." Opened his hand. Looked between the key and Seo. "This is just a normal key, isn't it?"

Seo said nothing. She just edged towards the door.

He pocketed the TARDIS key and leapt forwards, cutting off her escape. "Okay, very funny. Give me the dimension-splitting one."

"Hey, no fair!" Seo huffed. "You can't get _two_ keys." She held out her hand expectantly. "I _like_ that keychain!"

He fired off a shot over her head. Seo squeaked and ducked. The shot smashed into a canvas and wooden framed painting of the chained Abozalu — which turned white hot and then vanished in a puff of vaporization. There was a tingle of metal as the tiny metal bits from the frame fell and thudded against the ground.

Seo looked between McMann's gun and the vanished painting.

"I'm not joking around, here," said McMann. "I got a lot of stuff to sweep under the carpet, and not a lot of time. So if you make my life difficult, I'll throw Stenman's plans out the window and just take the shortcut."

"But I thought you needed me for when the Doctor got here!" Seo insisted, raising up her hands.

"That's what I meant by 'shortcut'," McMann said. Shrugged. "My gun vaporizes anything organic. So I shoot you and get your key when it falls to the floor. Then I tell the Doctor you're here. Act surprised when you're not and say you must have escaped. I let him do his thing. I kill him. Everyone's happy."

"Not me!" Seo insisted, backing away. "I'll be dead! That doesn't make me happy at..." She trailed off, the smallest hints of a smile touching her lips. "Hold on. Your gun vaporizes anything organic? You mean indiscriminately?"

McMann frowned. "Discriminately enough."

"Okay!" Seo beamed, tucking her thumbs in her pockets and rocking back and forth on her shoes. She looked him straight in the eye. "It's me. My blood. _I'm_ the Key."

McMann hesitated. "You're the...?"

"Iporil and Yimi keep saying it — remember?" Seo shrugged, walking over to a table engraved with Abozalu's face. Her fingers traced over it, curiously. "There's something weird about my blood. Their connection to the buried TARDIS lets them feel it. My blood splits open dimensions. It's what I do."

McMann didn't lower the gun. "You're trying to tell me," he deadpanned, "you're not a species. You're a key."

"What? It's not so strange." Seo beamed and posed. "Scan me! No readings. No species of origin. Nothing. What else could I be?"

McMann hesitated.

Finally, he lowered the gun.

"Brilliant! So now that you're through with your Knights of Byzantium impression — how about we find a more productive way to pass the time until the Doctor gets here?" Seo jumped up and sat on the top of a table engraved with Abozalu's face, her feet swinging beneath her. "Let's start with some questions. Where are we?"

"Galia-4, sector 10, 1280.259 by 840.155," said McMann. He waved his spare hand, and a clock blinked up at him. He cursed beneath his breath. "I don't have time for this."

"No? Oh, well, that's all right." Seo shot him a wide grin. "I'll just stay here and let myself get sacrificed to Abozalu. I mean, sure, this place is full of delicate points in space-time, and the last time someone ritually activated my blood in one of those, an entire universe went boom — but that's okay! You're busy!" She made a shooing gesture with her hands. "Go on!"

McMann gritted his teeth, thinking through all the implications of this. Then, grudgingly, he sighed and reholstered his gun. "You're going to get this whole species wiped out."

"I don't think so," Seo replied. "So where are we _really?"_

"I told you — Galia-4," McMann snapped. He swiped at the clock and it disappeared. "How'd you even get here without knowing when and where you are?"

Seo beamed. "Special key!" Swung her legs beneath her, leaning forwards. "Why? How'd _you_ get here?"

"Using the Red Teleports," said McMann. "That's _supposed_ to be the only way to see this world as it really is. Everyone using the normal teleport or walking onto the planet will see it empty."

Seo regarded this with interest. "So _this_ is the real world? And the empty one is... what? A fake? A smokescreen?"

"Something to keep the Time Agents off our backs," said McMann. He sat down, giving up the scary act for now. "You realize that the more you find out, the less chance there is of Stenman keeping you alive?"

Seo tapped her chin in an exaggerated and almost sarcastic thinking gesture. Then, she gave a short laugh. "I think I'll take my chances." She brushed some hair behind her shoulders. "Next question." She met his eyes with her own, her voice dropping. "Where is Stenman _really_ keeping the other Time Lord?"

"Other Time...?" McMann was struggling to keep up with all this. "You mean the Doctor?"

"I mean," said Seo, gesturing at the tapestries hanging on the walls around them, all showing Abozalu chained to a rock, "Abozalu."

McMann stared at her like she was insane.

"What?" Seo giggled. "You mean you didn't work it out?" Seo began ticking the items off on her fingers. "You evolved Yimi's species on top of an active TARDIS. I'm getting visions of those tapestries — like someone's beaming an SOS straight into my head. Your boss is hell-bent on killing any other Time Lords who turn up. And I'm not even counting what I saw outside." She shrugged. "What else could it be?"

"What else could it be?!" McMann threw open his arms. "We made it up! That's what else it could be!"

Seo laughed. "I don't believe you."

McMann waved his hand, and video footage played in front of them, hovering in the air. "I was part of the team that went back in time to implant this religion into the Patasi's culture." The video showed different clips of a human team teaching the religion to early Patasi. "It's a lie. A way to force them to work themselves to death." He shut off the video. "End of story."

"But it's so weird!" Seo insisted. "I mean, if you wanted to make up a religion, why not tell them that Stenman-Hoyer is their Creator? It'd be true enough."

McMann shrugged. "Look, kid — I've got no clue. Okay?" He glanced at the tapestry. "I was told to go back in time and teach them that story. Then I was told to kill anyone who didn't believe it fanatically. I didn't ask a lot of questions. I just did my job."

"You mean murder?" Seo jumped off the table, her eyes flashing with anger. "Enslavement? You just carried it out, no questions asked?"

"Some of us have student loans to pay off," McMann told her, evenly. "Landlords that keep raising the rent. And..." He looked away. "I got a brother with down syndrome. If I shut up and do my job, my family can afford to pay all the bills."

Seo's eyes were hard. "Is that supposed to be some excuse?" She threw her hand out towards the door. "Yimi's got a brother, too, you know. And you're trying to kill him for sleeping in!"

"Don't give me that — you've seen what the Patasi are like!" McMann insisted. "Bloodthirsty. Barbaric. Obsessed with sacrifice and death. Yimi's a lovely lady, don't get me wrong — but she'd slit her brother's throat in a heartbeat. No questions..."

Bang!

Seo and McMann both turned as the door slammed open, revealing a very angry Yimi — who had just finished picking the lock. She locked eyes with McMann, her feathers twitching in absolute fury.

"You wanted me to kill," Yimi seethed, "my own brother?!"

McMann tried to answer — but Yimi slapped him across the face. He winced, holding his cheek.

"You lied to me," Yimi accused. "Lied to all of us! You told me...!" She was almost in tears. "You told me I was special."

"You are special," McMann insisted. "Not just to Abozalu, but to me." He tried to take her hands in his. "Yimi, please..."

Seo coughed, raising a hand. "Just to clarify — do you sleep with _every_ high priest, before you put them in power? Or just Yimi?" She shrugged. "Because I think Yimi has a right to know."

McMann's face went pale. "What? No. Of course not! Not _every_ high priest. Just, you know, the... um... good-looking ones..."

He trailed off, as he realized that his 53rd century sexuality probably didn't match up with Yimi's own morality. She was giving him a look that could freeze ice.

"I... love you?" McMann tried.

With a furious scream, Yimi slapped him again — nearly bowling him over.

"I don't think it's mutual," Seo whispered to McMann, as she helped him back to his feet. "Sorry."

McMann broke free from Seo, trying to cover up his mistake. "Yimi, listen to me. The others are just a fling! They mean nothing. _You're_ the only one I care..."

" _Are_ just a fling? As in it's still going on?" Yimi looked close to tears. "Didn't I mean anything to you?!"

McMann opened his mouth, but didn't have anything to say.

"No," said Yimi, reading the answer in his eyes. "I didn't. You're just a man with a time machine, and I'm the barbarian you supply with weapons!"

"And not the first," came a reverberant, cold voice that echoed through the room. They all turned as a great big ugly brute of a Patasi emerged in the doorway, his white vestments inlaid with precious jewels and covered in gold. He shot Yimi a sneer as he entered, followed by a squad of Hunters, who ran inside and pointed their rifles at McMann, Yimi, and Seo.

McMann pointed his thumb at the ugly Patasi. "See? That one, I _didn't_ sleep with!" He paused. "Okay, last Friday, but..."

Yimi hit him again.

"So, this is the pathetic weakling who was supposed to cause my downfall?" the High Priest sneered, his eyes glaring at her with disgust. "I can see why the plan never got off the ground. You're losing your touch, Gevry."

Seo tucked her hands into her pockets. "Well, that's a double-entendre if I ever heard one."

"Him?" Yimi demanded of McMann, pointing to the High Priest. "You're sleeping with _him_?!"

"Yimi, it's the 53rd century!" McMann insisted, holding up his hands. "I mean — get with the times." He stepped out in front of Yimi, shielding her from the High Priest. "Look, Farhore, I could pretend that you caught us red-handed and I'm so upset — but we both know it's a lie." He shrugged. "You can kill Yimi. You can kill me. Doesn't matter. Stenman's gonna find some sap to overthrow you, one way or another. And when he does — it's not going to be pretty." His voice dropped. "So do you wanna go through all that, or should we treat this as a warning?"

Yimi's jaw dropped.

Seo went over to her, putting her arms around Yimi, sympathetically.

"You want 'Purple'," the High Priest guessed.

"We want everything," McMann corrected. He gestured at the precious gems on the High Priest's vestments. "We didn't put you in power so you could take a cut. Anything you take out of the ground belongs to us. _Everything_."

The High Priest puffed out his chest so that his feathers ruffled, then made a ritual gesture with his arms and a ritual flick of his tail. "Abozalu demands the Great Relic," he chanted. "Only the Great Relic shall appease our god."

The Hunters all replicated the tail flick. "Abozalu, rise again! Abozalu, lift your spirit!"

"I keep telling you — there's no Great Relic!" McMann insisted. "You just made that up so you could dip your hands in the till." He reached down and drew out his gun, aiming it at the High Priest. "Look, you're single-handedly causing the destruction of your own species, here. If you don't pay up, you're going to get wiped out."

The High Priest no longer seemed to be listening. He threw up his hands towards the ceiling, his head dropping back, his eyes wide and staring. "I can see it — the Great Relic of Abozalu. It is lost. Hidden from plain view. So small, tarnished with age, yet its power blazes through the heavens. The Abozalu sees two who may know where it is. They are coming..."

Yimi's eyes widened as well. "I can see them," she whispered. "The travelers! The lover and the old one."

"What's the relic?" Seo whispered back to Yimi. "How will they know where to find it?"

Yimi didn't seem to hear Seo. Her eyes were fixed into the distance. "Such a small thing. No bigger than my hand. There is a name that goes with it..." She struggled for it. "Biv."

"Biv?" Seo made a face. "You mean like ROY G. BIV?"

The High Priest lowered his hands, eyes now fixed on McMann. "The Great Relic is real. The healer and the blue chinned man shall uncover it!" He raised his fist. "And then they shall die! Death to the healer and the blue-chinned man!"

"Death to the healer and the blue-chinned man!" the Hunters chorused.

"The blue-chinned...?" McMann stared. "You mean the _Time Agent_?! You're stiffing us so you can get something from the Agency?!" He shook his head. "Good God, why? You're going to get yourselves killed!"

"Because Abbo-Dabbo is real!" Seo shouted, jumping to her feet.

All eyes turned to her.

"Abozalu..." Seo muttered, correcting herself, a bit awkwardly. Winced. "Whatever. Look, my point is, there's a kernel of truth in this story — but to find it, everyone's going to have to start telling the truth." She spun around, pointing at the High Priest. "Starting with you." She crossed her arms. "Yimi says the Devastation is where Abozalu crashed. But it's not. Is it?"

The High Priest said nothing.

"In fact, I think the Devastation only happened a few years ago," Seo guessed. "Not because something fell from the sky. But because you hit something while you were mining — and it blew up. Four dimensionally."

The High Priest's feathers bristled. "Blasphemer."

"Thing is, if _I'm_ the only one getting flashes from Abozalu," Seo went on, "there has to be a reason. And then it struck me, all of a sudden — that Abozalu isn't buried in three dimensions." She beamed. "He's buried in five."

Everyone around her looked at one another, confused.

"I mean," Seo said, a bit exasperated, "that I can feel where we are and what's beneath us. There are layers and layers and layers of curled up sub-dimensions hidden beneath this one. _That's_ where he must be trapped. At the bottom!" She stepped forwards, hands on her hips. "And I'm going to find him."

For a long moment, no one said anything.

Then the High Priest narrowed his eyes, glaring at Seo and Yimi. "Kill them both."

The Hunters, in unison, fired at Yimi and Seo.

McMann leapt in front of them. "No, you idiots! Stenman wants the Key aliv..."

The bullets slammed through his chest and he crumpled to the floor in front of them. Yimi screamed.

Seo just grabbed Yimi by the hand and yanked her off her feet, racing to the door. "Run!"

"Don't let Yimi of the Olingi leave this sanctuary alive!" the High Priest called out as they ran out of the room. "Leave the other one if you have to, but I want Yimi's head!"

Another concentrated burst of firepower ripped through the air, and Seo shoved Yimi and herself out of the way. They dove to the floor, Seo rolling them over and then using the momentum to rock them back to their feet. She winced, but kept running, Yimi still stunned but following behind.

"Gevry... he's...!" Yimi tried to say, but she realized she was crying, and the words were sticking in her throat.

"Just keep running!" Seo shouted at her, grabbing her hand and trying to yank her forwards. "Don't stop... ow!" Seo let go suddenly, stumbling and clutching her shoulder. She gritted her teeth, swallowed her pain and grabbed Yimi by the hand anyways, pushing onwards even as blood began to drip through her shirt where three bullet holes had torn through her shoulder.

Yimi stared. "You were shot." She allowed Seo to let her go, running on her own power. "But how are you still...?"

"Through sheer stubborn stupidity," Seo interrupted, teeth still gritted. "Now run!" Their footsteps echoed even louder as they ran into the main sanctuary of the Cathedral. Seo's eyes skimmed the area. "Horizontal mine shaft. Something we can go down without a ladder, that has lots of rocks and very few delicate points in space-time." She glanced at Yimi. "Please tell me that exists."

Yimi hesitated.

"Yimi!" Seo shouted, as the Hunters appeared behind them.

"Yes... yes!" Yimi said, flustered and struggling to think past the confusion and the overload of the last thirty minutes. She ran forwards, taking the lead — no longer pausing to ask why or what they were doing, just focusing on this one short term goal. "It's up ahead and to the right. Follow me!"

They descended into the mines, Seo somehow forcing herself onwards despite obvious pain and occasional stumbling that became less and less occasional over time. Yimi, to keep her emotions in control, maintained a laser focus on getting Seo down deep in the mines and outrunning the Hunters. But she could tell that Seo was not adapted for life down here — could tell through the coughing and the stumbling and the way she couldn't ruffle her feathers to keep the dust from her eyes.

Seo stumbled — a little more than usual — but righted herself, grabbing the wall of the mine shaft with her good hand, panting for breath even as she coughed from the dust.

"They... they're singing," Seo panted, staring up ahead at the choir who sang praises to Abozalu. "They're singing to the stones." She staggered forwards, strengthened more by the curiosity than the fear of being caught. "Why are they...?"

The choir held a long note, and the rock beside them fractured. The miners descended upon it, chanting the response as they used the crack to access the ore inside.

"That's brilliant!" Seo breathed, through rasping pants. She looked back at Yimi, her eyes full of pain and yet also full of wonder. "Yimi, your people are amazing! Has anyone ever told you that? They're...!" She broke down coughing, struggling for air.

Yimi hesitated, turning around. She could hear the Hunters approaching, closer and closer. She knew she had to run.

"Oh, come on," Yimi said, running back to Seo and grabbing her beneath the arms, helping her run onwards.

Seo, for a few minutes, was able to keep running — but her steps began to stumble more and more, her breath wheezed as she gasped for oxygen, and Yimi felt her sag in her arms.

"No, no!" Yimi began slapping Seo's cheeks, desperate to wake her up. She remembered that — don't ever let someone bleeding drift off to sleep. "Focus on something. Anything. Focus on my voice!" In a wavering, somewhat desperate voice, Yimi began to sing the song of the Great Relic. The walls trembled and shook around her.

Seo stirred. Her eyelids fluttered. "What... did you... just say?"

"Stay awake," Yimi told her, as she took a left turn at the fork. "We're nearly there. I know where we can find somewhere..."

Yimi skidded to a stop.

She'd made a mistake. A wrong turn. Must have.

Before her was a dead end — the only thing remaining was a mile high drop down a vertical mine shaft. No ladder. No elevator. Nothing. Yimi glanced back. The Hunters were already approaching. They were trapped.

Seo, in her arms, muttered, "Jump."

"But it's a mile high!" Yimi insisted. "We'll never survive the..."

"Just jump!" Seo shouted.

And as the Hunters opened fire, Yimi squeezed her eyes shut and leapt — still holding Seo — over the edge. She found herself screaming as she was falling... falling...


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the comments! I appreciate them. It's been a bit stressful recently. I was going to say a bit stressful "in my life recently" but I should probably say "on Earth recently."

Lantro gasped for air, as he emerged from the surface of the water. Water dripped off his hair, his ears, his blue chin. He shook out his hair, then remembered what had just happened. "We fell." He checked himself over. "I'm still alive." He looked down at his hands — and almost sunk back into the sea. Frantically, he began treading water again. "How did that happen?"

He half expected the Doctor to chime in with the answer — in a far too cheery voice. But there was no response. Lantro looked around, but couldn't see the Doctor anywhere.

"Doctor?" Lantro called out, swimming forward. He squinted, noticing a shape bobbing in the waves. He dove forwards. "Hold on! I'm coming!"

It wasn't the Doctor.

Instead, Lantro found himself face to face with something that looked like a cross between a beaver and a badger. It sniffed at him, then gave a cute, otter-like sound, batting its beaver tail in the water playfully.

Other playful otter-sounds came from all around Lantro — and he realized the creatures had surrounded him. They were talking to him! He tried to dive down deep into the water, maybe swim away from them — but they grabbed his shirt with their sharp little claws and hauled him up again, chattering to each other as they dragged him back to shore.

The Doctor was already there, sitting up on the sand, staring into the distance. He held a crumbly sort of white rock in his hand, and was breaking off chunks of it, idly, throwing them back into the sea.

"Still alive, then?" Lantro asked, as the badger-beaver things let him go. He got up off the sand, which clung to his skin and his clothes in a way that he knew would leave him itchy and sandy-looking when he dried out. He almost didn't care, as he slumped down next to the Doctor, with a small laugh. "You know, I joined the Agency to get excitement, danger, and a free tour of the universe. But even I felt that drop was past my pay grade."

The Doctor said nothing. He didn't look around.

Lantro frowned, glancing between the Doctor and the rock he was tearing apart. Pointed at the rock. "What's that?"

"Fossilized coral. 500 million years old." The Doctor still didn't look at Lantro, as he raised up the rock. He studied it almost curiously. "Probably eroded off that cliff face, over there." He gestured at the cliff. "You know, in your mind, that it happens, of course. Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust. Bones to rock. But actually being here, seeing it in person — those rock layers made of the bodies of my friends..." He sighed, then threw the coral — almost angrily — into the sea. "Makes me wonder what we were even fighting for."

Lantro watched, brow furrowed, as the Doctor got up and did his best to dust the sand off his clothes. There were little chunks of fossilized coral and odd-looking limestone strewn all across this beach, Lantro realized — but the Doctor didn't pay them any notice.

"War," the Doctor muttered, looking off into the sea, where the coral had sunk beneath the waves. "All that death, all that misery. And now, what's there left to show for it? Just me, a few layers of rock and fossils, and..."

For a second, he said nothing.

Then he shook his head, and forced a smile back onto his face. For the first time, he looked at Lantro directly, and offered him a hand up.

"Good news, Lantro!" the Doctor said, pulling him to his feet. "We just found the sentient species that created that Prometheus statue — half a dimension away. Care to meet them?"

* * *

The Doctor was fascinated by the creatures, running alongside them and talking to them in their own language, as they kept laughing at the Doctor and scuttling around him playfully. Lantro did not participate — just sat on the sidelines and watched.

"Ever the stern-faced, uptight professional, eh, Lanty-boy?" the Doctor asked, heading over to Lantro as the badger-beavers scuttled off on their own. He clapped Lantro on the back. "Enjoy yourself! Chat a bit! Have a cup of tea!"

Lantro's stern face didn't melt. Quietly, he said, "Doctor — there isn't supposed to _be_ a sentient species on this planet. Not according to the paperwork they filed with the Agency."

"Oh, good — you finally noticed that!" The Doctor grinned at him. "Well done. Top marks. We'll make a proper Time Agent out of you, yet!"

Lantro sighed, and shook his head. "Then again, it's just a bit of paperwork. Maybe I'll just let them off with a warning." He gestured at the badger-beaver creatures. "After all, these guys don't look too oppressed. Stenman-Hoyer's even preserved the environment, so they can inherit the planet when the mining's finished." He shrugged. "As violations go... it's not so bad."

The Doctor said nothing for a long moment, watching the badger-beavers scuttle around playfully. Then, very quietly, "They're all children."

Lantro blinked. "Huh?"

"We've been here for... what? An hour? Maybe two?" The Doctor waved his hand at the badger-beavers playing. "But I haven't met anyone older than ten. And when I ask them about their parents, they all change the subject."

Lantro went very still. His eyes remained fixed on the creatures.

"Something happened here," the Doctor muttered. "Something really, _really_ nasty." Then he grinned, clapped Lantro on the back, and raced out into the open. "Keep up, Lanty-boy! The kids gave me directions."

* * *

The other side of the mountain was bare — strip-mined and exposed to the elements. The rock had been chiseled away aggressively, and large chunks of it had tumbled down to the valley below. The Doctor ran down the mountainside, pausing as he arrived at the valley. He squatted down beside a cluster of brown boulders and white pebbles oozing with blue liquid. Lantro came over to him.

The Doctor held out his hand. "Careful. Not too close." He retrieved his sonic screwdriver. "And whatever you do... don't touch."

The brown boulders weren't boulders.

They were the corpses of the adult badger-beaver creatures.

"Dead," the Doctor muttered, his voice hard and icy. "Dead and shoved aside when they strip-mined the mountain. Didn't even bury the bodies!"

Lantro bent down to get a better view of the blue liquid dripping off the rocks. "What's...?"

The Doctor leapt over to him and yanked him away. "No, no, no!" Grabbed Lantro's hand and shook it. "Touch bad! No touch!" He let go of Lantro and turned back to it, wrinkling his nose. "I can smell what it is from here. I remember it." He stared out at the landscape of bodies before him. "The Straights of Karmedian. The Daleks used it to gain a foothold."

"The _Daleks_...?" Lantro started.

"It's designed to be absorbed by the local ecosystem," the Doctor said. "Infect everything. Every ocean, every river, every drop of water on this world — will become this stuff." He heard the distant crash of thunder from a distant storm rolling in. Turned around, his eyes fixed on the strangely blue clouds. "Whole worlds have died in days from this. I've watched it happen." He looked up at the strip-mined mountain, where he could still see chunks of a blue, powdery rock that had still not liquefied. "That's its solid form. Must have petrified over the millennia. Some idiot decided to show up and mine it. Part of it liquefied, and now..."

Lantro's eyes remained fixed on the rain cloud approaching them.

"The children," the Doctor said, turning back around and running back up the mountain — careful not to touch the blue rock. "We have to get them out of here. Now."


	14. Chapter 14

They waited in a sealed cave as the rainstorm passed. The Doctor made a fire, and all the children shivered and cuddled up together, as they fell asleep in front of it.

"That metamorphic rock that transports us," the Doctor told Lantro. He glanced deeper into the cave. "It's back there. When the kids wake up, we can get them out of here. Us, too."

One of the badger-beaver kids was curled up in the Doctor's lap. The child twitched, crying out as if from a nightmare. The Doctor rubbed the child's back, soothingly, until the child finally managed to fall back asleep.

"Doctor," Lantro whispered, staring down at it. "Their species eats rock."

The Doctor glanced up at him. "Took you this long to notice?" He pat the child's back again. "You should see what they excrete."

Lantro said nothing.

"Now, if I were a suspicious man," the Doctor continued, the jumping fire reflecting off his corneas, "I'd calculate the probability of a species evolving naturally on a planet owned by a mining company that just so happens to eat rock and excrete any gemstones inside that rock. Actually, I don't have to calculate it. It's 0."

Lantro sucked in a sharp breath. "They're genetically engineered."

"Or Stenman-Hoyer aggressively culled this species' genetic ancestors to force-evolve the species they wanted." The Doctor stared into the fire, letting the horror of it sink in. "You know, I always sort of liked Plate Cracking. A little controversial, and I hate the extinction events bit, but you can't argue with creating life. And allowing it is better than the alternative — unwriting the histories of all those planets and killing the creatures thereon. But this..."

Lantro nodded. For a few moments, neither said anything.

"That... blue stuff," Lantro ventured. "What is it, exactly? How does it...?"

"A poison," the Doctor muttered. "A nasty one." He leaned forwards, poking at the fire with a stick. "Don't tell me you knew nothing about this, Lantro. Someone human came back here after the native adults died — someone who saw what that poison did, liked the results, and purposely mined out the rest of it." He looked back at Lantro, eyes narrowing. "So what's really going on?"

Lantro blinked. "What are you...?"

"What am I implying?" The Doctor shook his head. "That you're either inexplicably incompetent — or you saw hints of what was going on, and purposely looked the other way. For what? A bribe, maybe?"

Lantro shoved a finger in the Doctor's face. "Now see here...!"

Several of the children around them stirred, and the Doctor touched a finger to his lips, sternly.

"I didn't know about any of this," Lantro went on, in a harsh whisper. He threw out his hands, to indicate the kids. "You think I'd have just sat back and let them get away with manufacturing and murdering slave labor?" He pointed at the ground. "I think it's pretty obvious that we're not on Galia-4 anymore. Wherever we are, I'll make sure the Time Agency takes charge of this place immediately. But this wasn't _my_ responsibility."

The Doctor didn't seem impressed. "So Stenman-Hoyer employees in full hazmat suits start wheeling bio-hazard bins down the corridors of the Main Complex on Galia-4 — and you say, 'not mined on Galia-4, not my problem!'"

Lantro hesitated. "Not... exactly like that..."

The Doctor shot Lantro a look.

"I'll write them up when I get back," Lantro told him. "You're right. This violates numerous Plate Cracking regulations. The creation of this species alone is...!"

"I'm not talking about Plate Cracking!" The Doctor turned on him. "Lantro, Stenman-Hoyer isn't selling gems and minerals. That's just a front. They make money by digging up and selling dangerous alien weapons."

Lantro said nothing.

For a few long moments, they remained in silence.

"You're... you're serious, aren't you?" Lantro shook his head. "But...!" He gestured at the children. "They eat rock and poop gemstones!"

"Feed them a fossilized Dalek Time Destroyer, and I'm sure they'll poop it out, as well." The Doctor shook his head, turning back to the fire. "But it's all just a paperwork violation to people like you. Long as Stenman-Hoyer's used the right sized font, they can sell bombs and poison alike." He gave a long, heavy sigh. "Just go away, Lantro. I need to think."

"But...!"

The Doctor held up a warning finger to Lantro. "Not talk. Think."

Went back to staring at the fire.

Lantro got up, with a sigh. Brushed himself off. "It's _not_ just a paperwork violation, you know," he said. "I don't know where we are, but when the Agency hears about this — Stenman-Hoyer's going to be in big trouble."

The Doctor ignored him.

"Yeah..." Lantro shoved his hands into his pockets. "Time to think. Right..." Then, with a small shake of his head, he headed further into the cave — to find that rock the Doctor had mentioned, earlier.

He paused, a short ways away.

Spun around, as he caught something out of the corner of his eye. He stepped forwards, squinting to see in the dim light of the distant fire. Reached out, tracing his fingers across the words etched into a large boulder.

REMEMBER ME

At the bottom, beneath the boulder, Lantro's fingers made contact with deathly-cold human skin. He yanked his hand back. There was a body crushed beneath this rock. All that remained visible was one hand, its wrist still bearing that tell-tale vortex manipulator tan mark.

Lantro glanced back at the Doctor. "Doc...!"

A shark glare from the Doctor changed his mind. As the Doctor turned back to the fire, Lantro grabbed one of the other boulders and rolled it in front of the message — and the dead woman's hand. He stood there, a long moment, taking everything in.

His hands were shaking.

He shoved them back in his pockets. "Time to think," he muttered, as he made his way deeper into the cave. "Yeah. Good idea."

* * *

"Lantro and Kardeni," Jenny said, as they made their way to Branden's office so they could get a secure and private communications line.

Branden looked a little uncomfortable. "You wanna talk about _that_." He shoved his hands into his pockets. "Look, I don't do office gossip. I talk to Mr. Kardeni every year at the company Christmas party. He and Zeera seem very happy together."

"You've met the husband?" Jenny was intrigued. "What's _he_ like?"

"Not like Lantro," said Branden. He led Jenny around a corner. "Have you met Lantro?"

Jenny nodded. "Uptight. Professional. Strong-man."

" _Except_ around Kardeni," Branden countered. "Then he's actually quite funny and charming. People come into her office just to watch him try to crack her up. Sometimes, even Stenman pokes his head out."

"Funny and charming?" Jenny couldn't imagine that. "Lantro?"

"Oh, he'll do anything to make her laugh," said Branden. "Like this one time, she was running around all day making train reservations for a bunch of us to go between two conferences on Earth, and he slipped into her office while she was out and transformed it into a working model railway. There was this little toy train that zig-zagged all over the office, then went through a tunnel to pick up paperwork from Stenman's office and deliver it to Zeera's desk. And when she took it, the train's smoke-stack would puff up a smiley face."

"Are you serious?" Again, Jenny couldn't imagine that.

"Yeah, you can see why everyone pokes their heads in," said Branden. "He did this scavenger hunt for her birthday with these robot gophers that leapt out of the ground and gave her little cards whenever she reached the correct room. He created a temporal vase for her that lets her pick any stage in the flowers' lives. All kinds of stuff." He gave a small laugh. "He's very laid back around her. Very casual. Very care-free. Extremely handy. And when Kardeni gets overworked, Lantro starts running errands for her — buying her groceries or picking up her kids or dropping off her dry cleaning."

"I can see why people think they're having an affair," said Jenny. "So what's her husband like?"

"The quiet, mathy type." Branden raised his hand up to indicate height. "About so tall. Big guy. Football-player's build. Likes to go off hunting with his buddies a lot. Takes the kids, too. You can tell when he's gone because Zeera spends all her time here — even when Lantro's not around. And I think Mr. Kardeni's the primary caretaker for the household. He's always talking about the kids' appointments or swim meets or music lessons." He grinned at Jenny. "Zeera's husband is very friendly. Very nice. Deeply devoted to Zeera and the children."

"But not the kind of person who'd turn her office into a model railway?" Jenny asked.

"Not remotely," Branden agreed.

Jenny nodded, slowly, taking all this in.

"So I don't know if there's an affair going on," said Branden. "But it's their business if there is. And as long as Lantro's little jokes keep being entertaining — I've kind of got no problem with it."

"I think you might, actually," Jenny pointed out. "I mean, if Lantro's spending all his time impressing Kardeni — who's actually making sure Stenman-Hoyer's following the law?"


	15. Chapter 15

Yimi sat up, surprised to realize she wasn't dead. Through the darkness of the horizontal mine shaft, she could make out that the vertical mine shaft was gone — and so were the Hunters.

Yimi frowned.

No, not just the Hunters. _Everyone_ was gone. No miners. No High Priest. Nobody. Not even a distant sound of pickaxes or singing or voices.

Yimi heard a groan beside her — and was surprised to see Seo lying on the ground, glowing a faint golden color where the bullet wounds made contact with the ground. The ground was made of an odd sort of stone, Yimi thought — a little like limestone, but with a strange consistency to it. And, odder still, the golden glow seemed to originate from the limestone itself.

Seo slowly peeled herself off the floor, and the glow vanished. The caves grew pitch dark, and Yimi wished she'd thought to bring a torch.

"Are you still there?" Yimi asked, tentatively. "Are... are you okay?"

Seo's voice, when it answered, sounded a lot stronger — and somewhat surprised. "Am _I_ okay?!" She put her hand on Yimi's shoulder. "Are _you_ okay? You just heard all sorts of terrible things, and then you jumped down a mile-high mine shaft!"

Yimi said nothing for a few long moments. The silence in the mines felt creepy and chilling... like everything she had heard when she'd been listening behind that door. She still didn't know what was true, anymore.

"Let's just get out of here," Yimi said, helping Seo to her feet. She reached out, stumbling forwards, struggling to remember enough to navigate in the pitch black. "Why is it so dark? It's never like this. What could have happened, to cause...?"

A burst of light illuminated the cavern, and Yimi turned, surprised, to find Seo holding a match. Seo grinned at Yimi, then ran over to an unlit torch hanging on the wall, yanked it free, and dropped the match on top. With a _fwumf_ , the torch illuminated.

"About that," Seo said, running up the mine shaft. "We might not be in exactly the same place we left."

Yimi sprinted after her, huffing and puffing and struggling to keep up. "You mean we're in a different mine shaft?"

"I mean we're in a different dimension!" Seo called back, slowing a little so Yimi could catch up. "There's a layer of metamorphic rock I found in the Devastation." The mine shaft branched out, and Seo swung down the rightmost path. "I just had to find that down here, and it was easy to flip us over."

Yimi finally caught up to Seo. "This has to do with you being a dimension key, doesn't it?" She frowned. "But — wait. I thought you said it was dangerous to..."

Seo stopped suddenly and spun around, meeting Yimi's eyes. "Yes. It's dangerous. It's _really_ dangerous. That's why I was passing out. Because I'm made of energy — and I was trying to use that energy to make sure the universe didn't tear apart." She glanced around herself. Hesitated. "Thing is — I'm not sure we're even _in_ the universe, anymore."

"I don't understand," said Yimi.

"Neither do I," Seo admitted. "It's just something I felt when I was flipping us across dimensions..." She hesitated, then shook her head and dismissed it. "Doesn't matter. Just — don't tell anyone I'm the Key. Got that?" She turned back around and continued upwards. "Being powerful isn't always a blessing, Yimi. In my case, it's usually a curse."

Yimi frowned.

Then realized she was getting left behind, and sprinted forwards to keep up with Seo.

"Were you..." Yimi's voice came out more as a whistle than real words. She stopped. Swallowed. In a lower, more intelligible voice: "Were you telling the truth? Is Abozalu real?"

"Yes. Well, sort of." Seo shot Yimi a sad, sympathetic look. "Thing is — most of what you believed really was a lie. Stenman-Hoyer _does_ own your planet. They _have_ been manipulating your people for their whole evolution. But you're right that there's more to it than that."

"You mean Abozalu," said Yimi.

"I mean everything." Seo jumped up and down on the limestone floor of the mine shaft. "Limestone's made of fossilized bones and such, right? Fossilized bones with limited regenerative properties." She gestured at Yimi. "And then there's the fact that your people weren't just digging up gold and silver, jewels and gems. Most of what they were digging up were weapons — Dalek and Time Lord weapons. And there's the battle hymn in your heads. And the fact that the TARDIS you evolved near was fixated on blood and death."

Yimi's hands shook, but she just nodded.

"We're walking on a graveyard," said Seo, "filled with the remains of a battle fought across space and time. The debris fell five dimensionally." She reached out, brushing her hand along the geologic layers on the walls. "And you and I are currently descending the dimensional strata."

"Towards the bottom?" Yimi asked. "Is that where Abozalu is?"

"That's my best guess." Seo glanced over at Yimi, intrigued. "That song you sang earlier. Can you sing it again?"

Yimi took a shaky breath and, a bit more timidly, sang it again.

"Well, that clinches it," Seo said, cutting Yimi off. "It has to be him." Her eyes narrowed, and her pace quickened. "The thing you said about it being like a drumbeat, that feeling of mental manipulation like with Archangel. There's no one else it could be. He's back. Again." Her hands clenched into fists, her eyes blazing. "And this time, I'm going to kill him."

Yimi leapt in alarm. "What?!" She ran forwards, grabbing Seo by the arms and forcibly stopping her. "You can't."

"I have to," Seo said, her eyes still dark and angry. "Yimi, he destroyed me. Twisted everything I was until it was evil and hateful and terrified." She yanked herself free from Yimi's grip. Didn't break her stare. "I can't go back to that. Not again." She turned away. "I won't."

Yimi ran after her. "I'll kill you."

Seo didn't answer.

"I mean it," Yimi insisted, her voice shaking with fury. "If you kill Abozalu, I will split you open from nose to belly and spill your blood upon his alter as a sacrifice to...!"

Seo shoved them both to the side of the cave wall, shushing Yimi. They were approaching the cathedral again, but there was a strange sound coming from there... at first, it sounded like a voice — but now, it sounded more like breaking wood...

And the air around them smelt funny, too, come to think of it...

"It's on fire!" Seo realized, her eyes going wide. She grabbed Yimi by a feathery arm and tugged her along. "Keep moving! You won't cough from the carbon monoxide, but it'll still kill us." She squinted as the mine shaft began to fill with smoke. "The fire must have only just started — or we'd be dead already. That means we can still make it out alive!"

They ran into a cathedral that was engulfed in flames. The walls and floors had been drenched in lighter fluid. The stained glass windows were melting, leaving only empty windows showing gateways to the flames.

Yimi furrowed the feathers on her face, to fan the smoke away from her eyes. She was used to seeing in low light. She could spot an exit that was fire-free, towards their right.

"That way!" Yimi said.

Seo tried to follow, but staggered and dropped Yimi's arm as she broke down coughing. Yimi glanced back, her own breathing unperturbed as her tusks filtered out the ash and soot and particulate matter.

Yet Seo sank towards the ground as her featherless, tuskless face contorted with coughing, and she struggled for breath.

Yimi turned away, left Seo to die, and ran to the exit.

For a few moments, Yimi thought about Seo — blinded by smoke and choked by ash — burning to death in that cathedral. And she thought — yes. That made sense. This girl who swore to kill Abozalu, who claimed to be his enemy — where better to leave her to die than in His cathedral? Under His divine...?

Yimi glanced back as she reached the door.

She froze.

Stared.

Seo, coughing and blinded by the smoke, had climbed back to her feet and was now walking, with a stubborn determination, back into the worst of the flames and the smoke and the fire, calling out... Yimi's name.

"She thinks that when I let her go, I fell back into the flames," Yimi breathed. "She won't leave me behind."

A burning wooden beam crashed to the ground beside Yimi, its flames scorching her feathers — but Yimi still shivered. Seo barely knew her. Why...?

No.

It didn't matter.

Yimi ran back and yanked Seo away from the flames. The fire was spreading quickly, and wooden beams were already cracking and falling down around them. Seo looked back at Yimi, surprised that she'd come from the opposite direction. She asked something that Yimi couldn't hear as the roof began to collapse, and Yimi knew they had no more time. She turned back towards the exit, and dragged Seo along behind her as they both raced out of the cathedral.

They burst into the fresh air, Yimi swallowing great big lungfuls of it, and her vision began to blur. At first, she thought this was because of some ash that had fallen into her eyes — but Seo reached over and caught a tear that had rolled down Yimi's cheek. Then hugged her.

Yimi stood there, a moment, in Seo's embrace, watching as Abozalu's holy cathedral burned to ash before her very eyes...

"You can't escape that easily!" shouted a voice, as a Patasi jumped out at them and tackled them to the ground. "Death to the humans! Death to the...!" With a squawk, the Patasi jumped back. "You're not human!"

A squawk?

Yimi stared at the oddly colored, tuskless Patasi. He gave a hacking cough, then thumped the metal ring attached to his throat with a four-fingered hand, illuminating lights across its surface.

"You're a mutant!" shouted both Yimi and the tuskless Patasi at the same time.

Seo leapt in between the two of them, separating them. "No one's a mutant. I told you, Yimi, this is another world! We're...!"

Seo yelped as a group of tuskless Patasi leapt down from the trees and grabbed her, roughly forcing her hands behind her back.

"Another agent of the false gods of Stenman and Hoyer!" the leader of the tuskless Patasi announced. He pointed an accusatory finger at Seo. "See how she mutated our perfect genes to produce this monster!" He pointed at Yimi. "This is what they plan to do to all of us."

"No, you're completely misunderstanding the entire concept of evolution," Seo insisted. "Nobody's genes are 'perfect'. Circumstance and environment shape our..."

"Abozalu shapes us in His holy image!" said the tuskless Patasi. "Not Stenman and Hoyer!"

"All praise Abozalu!" shouted the rest of the tuskless Patasi, throwing stones at Yimi and Seo. "Death to the false gods of Stenman and Hoyer! Death to the humans!"

Yimi raised up her hands to protect her face, yelping as the rocks struck her.

"Oh, that's brilliant!" Seo's eyes glowed, as she started catching the rocks. She spun on Yimi, raising one up. "It's fossilized TARDIS coral!" Raised up another two in her other hand. "And little bits of Dalek bumps and eyestalks!" She turned back to the Patasi, showing them the stones. "Don't you see what's going on here? Abozalu's a Time Lord! He's...!"

That was when Seo screamed.

The air seemed to smolder and burn around her like paper, and a fiery bird leapt out of her chest and circled the air around her. Blood began pouring from Seo's hands and ankles, as Seo collapsed to the ground, writhing and struggling as if trying to break free.

The tuskless Patasi all stared at the fiery bird as it dissolved into the night air.

It was the sign of Abozalu.

"You see," Yimi announced to the crowd, "how Abozalu shows his favor for this human..." She hesitated, "I mean, this part-human creature! Abozalu knew you were about to kill His messenger, and sent a sign so you would keep her alive!"

That much Yimi was pretty sure was true — although Yimi honestly had no idea why Abozalu was trying to save Seo, when she wanted to kill Him.

"You lie!" shouted one of the tuskless Patasi. "Why would Abozalu protect a human?"

"Because, because..." Yimi floundered for some explanation. Then seized upon it. "Because of Seo's holy powers." She spread open her arms and gave a reverent flick of her tail. "She seeks to release Abozalu. And if you kill her, you defy His will and deny Him His salvation."

For a few long moments, no one was sure what to say. They all looked to the head of the tuskless Patasi, who stared at Yimi and Seo, speechless.

"What do we do, Hyoli?" a tuskless Patasi asked the leader, pointedly.

"I... she..." Hyoli coughed. Then, turning to the others, commanded, "Take her. Bind her and question her, my brothers. If she is, indeed, sent by Abozalu, then we will assemble a holy army to aid her on her quest. Otherwise, we shall burn her and the mutant Patasi alive."

The others cheered and rushed forwards, grabbing Seo off the ground. Others leapt at Yimi, who threw herself out of the way and rolled across the ground towards the burning cathedral. The cathedral dedicated — not to Abozalu — but to Stenman and Hoyer. A human sounding cry echoed, and Yimi turned...

A burning human figure emerged in the doorway, flames igniting and melting her skin. Yimi shuddered, hands to her mouth, as she recognized the woman.

"Tell... tell him," Mutajar said, her skin melting and her hair turning to cinders as she sunk to the ground. "Tell him... remember... me..."

The tuskless Patasi leapt on Yimi and grabbed her by the arms, hauling her away — as, right before Yimi's eyes, Dr. Faye Mutajar died.

Again.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone. Sorry I didn't post anything yesterday. Real life called. Here's today's chapter. Sorry it's so short. Real life's still on the phone, but I placed it on hold so I could post.

Jenny was expecting Kardeni to say _something_ as Jenny told her all about their journey to the teleport room and their suspicions about Branden's ghosts. So it was a little unnerving, as Jenny finished telling Kardeni everything over the comms device, that there was only... silence.

Then, finally, in a low voice, "Who are you? Police? FBI? Or were you sent by the Time Agency?"

Jenny and Branden exchanged a look.

"I'm not talking until I get a lawyer," Kardeni added, before Jenny or Branden could speak further. "You can't prove we did anything."

"We weren't trying to accuse you, Zeera," Branden said, taking the comms device. "I assumed you'd be surprised and outraged by the whole thing. Or... I don't know... give a perfectly rational and perfectly legal explanation."

Jenny grabbed back the comms unit. "Mrs. Kardeni, I promise, I'm not with the police or... any of the other things you mentioned. I just thought you could use my help."

Kardeni said nothing.

"What does that mean?" Branden asked Jenny. His hands were shaking. "You don't think she's in on it, too?"

Jenny sighed. "No, I doubt that. She only found out a short time back — right around when she broke off her friendship with Lantro. Stenman and Hoyer are pressuring her to stay silent. And she knows she has to — because one of her family is sick, and she needs Stenman to help her pay the bills."

Branden's eyes went wide. "Is that why someone poisoned her two months ago? To stop her talking?"

Jenny blinked. Shook her head. "Wait, what?! She was poisoned?"

"Yeah, she had to get her stomach pumped," Branden agreed. "Emergency room. Hospital. The whole thing. We were told it was just food poisoning. But she won't touch the coffee in the breakroom since it happened."

Jenny thought back to her time in the break room. Kardeni _had_ been unusually aware of the possibility that Jenny might be poisoned. And she did reject the coffee.

"Stenman and Hoyer aren't here, anymore, though," Jenny pointed out — mostly to Kardeni. "My dad's out with Lantro, and Seo's off doing who-knows-what. We may not be cops, but by the end of this, the truth is going to come out, one way or another. So the question, Mrs. Kardeni, is if you want to be the hero or the...?"

"Dad?" Kardeni cut in. "The Doctor's your dad?"

Jenny felt a little uneasy. "Uh... yeah. That's right." She paused. "Why? Is that a problem?"

For a second, Kardeni said nothing.

Then, finally, she gave a long sigh. "Meet me at Door 78B in ten minutes."

* * *

The Doctor and Lantro stood at the top of a mountain, on a very slightly different world, as the little badger-beaver children raced down, overjoyed to be somewhere safe. The Doctor waved at them, as they laughed and chattered and ran through the trees.

"They'll be all right here?" Lantro asked, looking out after them. "No secret green poisons or secret purple poisons or anything else they need to look out for?"

"They'll be fine," the Doctor insisted. But there was a hardness in his eyes that wouldn't leave them. "I warned them this planet's a minefield. They know to be careful."

Lantro turned to him. "A minefield? Are you serious?" He looked down at his feet. "You're saying there could be some kind of giant temporal bomb down there, right now — just waiting to go off?"

The Doctor didn't answer.

"Oh, well, that's comforting." Lantro shook his head, kicking the dirt beneath him. "You realize that if I get blown to smithereens before I find a way back to the Agency, Stenman-Hoyer will just keep going. A heads up about whether I'm standing on a bomb would be nice."

The Doctor brought out a chunk of the metamorphic rock he'd brought with him. "You could be. Could not. I don't know." Adjusted his sonic with his teeth. Buzzed it at the rock. "I don't think I was in this battle. So I have no idea what's really down there." The rock began to hum and buzz in his hands, but didn't turn into a portal. The Doctor buzzed it again. "There _was_ a purple poison used during the War. And time destroyers. From both sides. And something we referred to as a 'Magenta Dragon' — which is a lot less fun than it sounds."

"It sounds like a drug," Lantro pointed out.

"Cluster bomb, actually," the Doctor countered, buzzing at a different point in the rock, "that rolls backwards and forwards through time. Spews magenta fireballs through the vortex as it goes. Hence, the name. I spent a whole lifetime tracking down the undetonated ones and disarm..."

The rock exploded in his hand, sending little rock chunklets flying through the air.

Lantro and the Doctor ducked.

"Don't tell me that was a...!" Lantro started.

"Nope. Just a miscalculation," the Doctor said, picking shards of rock out of his hair. "Looks like we have to find it fresh on every world and can't take any with us." He analyzed one of the shards, going almost cross-eyed, then tossed it away. "Oh, well." Swung his arm around Lantro. "Come along, Lanty-boy! Back to the...!"

That was when a horde of adult badger-beavers... except with sharper teeth, a less beaver-ish tail, and horns — leapt out of the bushes at them, screaming, "Death to the humans!"

The Doctor yanked Lantro with him, sprinting towards the cave. "Run!"


	17. Chapter 17

With a buzz of the sonic screwdriver, the Doctor and Lantro vanished from the cave, yet again.

When they reappeared, they found that the mountain had vanished, and they were dangling in midair. They both cried out, as they plummeted down through the air and towards the orangey-green landscape beneath them. With a splash, they landed in the middle of a winding river that cut through the orangey-green around them.

Lantro broke the water first. "That fall also should have killed us." He looked around, fighting the current as he swam. "Doctor?"

"Over here!" the Doctor called, some ways downstream from him. The Doctor had found a rock of jadeite and was hanging on to it, grinning back at Lantro. "And I know! Marvelous, isn't it? I wonder why we're not dead." That was when he noticed that the orangey-greenish landscape around them was colored — not by an orangey-greenish grass — but by a thick and all-pervading moss that spanned the whole length of the landscape. Occasionally, it formed gigantic pillars, towering above their heads. "Oh, hello. What are you?"

The Doctor dove into the river again, swimming for the shoreline.

Lantro sighed, then dove into the water and swam after him.

By the time Lantro emerged onto the shore, the Doctor was already bent down, his face illuminated in curiosity and excitement, as he kept staring at that moss. It was thick and springy and flexible, except where it knitted itself together more tightly to form the gigantic pillars.

The Doctor took out his sonic and buzzed it at the moss underfoot.

The moss beneath his feet, in reaction to the sonic, began to grow rapidly around his boots.

"Don't scan the Ouribiu!" Lantro shouted, racing at the Doctor and dragging him away from the surging growth of moss before it could weave itself tight enough around his boot to trap him.

The Doctor met Lantro's eyes with an intrigued — and warning — stare.

The stare made Lantro let him go and step back, suddenly silent.

"Ouribiu," the Doctor repeated, powering down his sonic and tucking it in his pocket.

Lantro grimaced. "I... um..." He glanced around himself, shifting his feet nervously as the moss kept trying to cling to his shoes. "I remember this stuff. I saw a design spec for it — way back. I never dreamed they'd be stupid enough to actually force-evolve it."

The Doctor brushed his hair from his eyes. "You saw a design spec."

"They run all the design specs and speciation reports through the Agency," Lantro said. "It's required." Gestured at the moss. "One of the scientists, Branden..." He frowned, trying to remember the name. "...Ritchering! He was the one who signed off on the report for the Ouribiu. This is his species."

The Doctor didn't look impressed. "And you remember the name of a species that never evolved — but forget the name of the scientist?"

"I remember Ouribiu," Lantro countered, "because it wasn't Dr. Ritchering's name. Joey Kardeni — one of Zeera's kids — was playing in the offices that day. _He_ named it." He looked off into the distance, distractedly. "Great kid, Joey. It broke his heart when I disallowed the species' evolution."

The Doctor's sternness began to drop a little. "Zeera Kardeni... your historian friend."

"Stenman's secretary," Lantro agreed. He grinned at the Doctor. "Her husband and I played football together in high school. I give her lifts back home at the end of the day." His grin faded, and he stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Well... I used to."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. "Until...?"

Lantro decided not to answer this question. "The Ouribiu was designed to eat through anything, when it had to," he said. "Trees, animals, even rock. Mostly, it's designed to look for energy signatures, so the company can use that data to locate and mine uranium deposits in the southwestern hemisphere. At least, that's what they told me."

The Doctor scoffed.

"I know, I know," Lantro sighed. He pushed back his hair. "It was naïve of me. Stupid, even. If they were mining for uranium, why not develop something that homed in on radioactivity? Why energy signatures?" He shook his head. "I should have seen it sooner."

The Doctor crossed his arms, and gave him a look that said, 'yes, you should.'

"Thing was — Stenman-Hoyer were afraid the moss would eat through gold and silver and precious gems along its way to the uranium deposits," Lantro explained. "So Dr. Ritchering made the moss semi-intelligent. Just enough to pick and choose what to save versus what to eat. As a Time Agent, I had to approve that the moss wasn't sentient."

"And you pulled the plug," the Doctor remembered. He gestured around them. "So why's it here now?"

"I have no idea." Lantro looked around himself, and scowled. "It shouldn't be here. None of what we've seen should be here. I never even saw a design spec for those beaver-badger things that we encountered last time!"

The Doctor nodded, slowly.

"Except..." Lantro paused, hesitated, then — with a wince — put in, "This is going to sound insane."

The Doctor grinned. "I like insane."

"It's just... that scientist I mentioned earlier," said Lantro. "Dr. Ritchering? He's been telling Zeera the Main Complex is haunted. He says he keeps seeing the ghosts of creatures he proposed, but which never evolved."

The Doctor's eyes sparkled. "What? Really?" He grinned. "Oh, splendid!"

Lantro shot him a look. "Splendid?"

The grin faltered. "Well, not 'splendid' in terms of it being actually good," the Doctor qualified, "more sort of 'splendid' in terms of 'that confirms my theories are correct and I've finally worked out where we are.'"

A slow nod from Lantro. "So... where are we? And whatever happened to that TARDIS we were supposed to be looking...?"

They were drowned out by the buzz of a gigantic house-fly flying through the air above them. They glanced up, just in time to see it collide with one of the huge pillars of moss. The moss seemed to zap some sort of electric current through the insect, and it shuddered, then dropped to the ground, where the moss swarmed over it and devoured it.

The Doctor grimaced. "First, we go somewhere the moss isn't," he proposed, ushering Lantro away from the pillar. "Then, I'll explain."

* * *

Seo blinked. One moment, she'd been trapped in another vision — herself chained up and surrounded by fire. And the next, she was back in the real world. She tried to move, but realized she'd been tied up and was dangling upside down from a low-hanging tree branch.

The crowd of tuskless Patasi were all watching her with barely suppressed rage. Some were holding Yimi. Most were holding sticks.

"Why do I get the feeling I'm a piñata, now?" Seo asked herself, as she swayed from side to side.

The Patasi with the silver neck-ring came over. "This Patasi mutant says you're on a mission to find Abozalu," he said, poking her with his stick. "What have you to say for yourself?"

Seo wriggled. "Ow! Ow! Ow! You're hitting my wrists!" Why were her wrists throbbing like this? She could swear she could still feel the chains through them. "Look, could you untie me? I'm sort of a rubbish piñata. I'm not stuffed with candy. And if you hit me too many times, the universe goes boom."

The crowd all started shouting at her angrily over this. They shouted at the Patasi-in-charge, too. Seems his name was Hyoli.

Hyoli held out his stick to settle the crowd, but didn't untie her.

"Look, I think I'm starting to work out what's really going on here," Seo explained to them all. "But it's a bit complicated." She squirmed in her ropes. "So how about you untie me and let Yimi go, and I'll explain it to you?"

The crowd didn't look happy with this.

"No, really, you'll like the explanation," Seo offered. "It makes Stenman-Hoyer look really, _really_ bad."


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, everyone! I hope you're all still doing okay. Today's chapter is a good one and you're about to start getting a lot of answers. Just to explain why I've been a little flaky recently: earlier in the week, I had a whole bunch of stuff come up in real life, plus - at the same time - I discovered a mistake in one of my upcoming chapters. I knew I needed to fix the problem but didn't have time to deal with it. Then I forgot. Then I went back to post, remembered, and went, "Ack! I still have no time to do this!" But I believe the problem is now fixed.
> 
> I really dread moments like that. Especially in this story, where I was so careful about little details. Even the number of times Kardeni calls Lantro "Andrew" versus "Agent Lantro"! My hope is that as you continue reading the story and learning new details, you should be able to go back and reread parts and pick up new information that you didn't notice before.
> 
> Anyways, I thought you deserved an explanation.
> 
> Enjoy this chapter. I definitely do.

Door 78B was located upstairs, directly opposite the door to the viewing platform. This one, like the other, led to a hidden hallway and a door locked by Time Lord technology. Kardeni quickly unlocked it for them.

"Before you ask, yes, this room is opposite that viewing platform you were in earlier," Kardeni explained, ushering them inside quickly before shutting and relocking the door. She seemed tense and a little worried, as they looked around. "These are the rough-draft interfaces — before the company built the more user-friendly Viewing Platform. But since that one's out of commission..."

Jenny stepped over a tangle of cords and wires. The whole room was filled with machinery — some in use, much of it discarded. Its walls were a cluster of drawings and sketches and diagrams. A chalk board filled with doodled temporal equations lay at one side, and at the other side, a primitive-looking control console with an old-fashioned wall screen interface. A series of perhaps ten old-fashioned keyboards — each in a different language — were hooked up to the control console.

Kardeni grabbed a keyboard whose keys had been labeled with a sharpie, and began to type. "Someone's taken advantage of our systems failure," she explained, as she typed, "to tear apart the Galia-3 dimensional congruity. That's why the ghosts are emerging. In an hour, the whole thing will break down, and we'll get torn apart by flesh-eating moss and killer badger-beavers and bloodthirsty tusked-bird people." She looked back over her shoulder at Jenny, as she brought up the same diagnostic the Doctor had been analyzing in the previous room. "I assume you know how to read Gallifreyan?"

Truth was, Jenny's Gallifreyan skills were a bit shaky. But she tried to look like an expert as she came over.

"Line 10 is what's worrying me," Kardeni explained, highlighting it on the screen. "See, here, where the numbers keep increasing? That's where you can see the split happening in real time."

Jenny blinked. Was her Gallifreyan just not up to par? But — no. Dad had also said it meant nothing. "That line says, 'An elephant has been discovered in the sidewalk of the raspberry jam syntax at...'"

Kardeni glanced back at her, frowning. "Huh?" Then, her eyes lit up. "Of course! You know _real_ Gallifreyan!"

Jenny shifted uncomfortably. "I... uh..."

Kardeni grabbed a book nearby and tossed it to Jenny — who caught it. _The Oxford Gallifreyan-to-Standard-Galactic Dictionary_. Jenny flipped through, noting all the handwritten comments of, 'this is wrong' or 'this doesn't mean anything close to this.'

The handwriting was Kardeni's.

"The readouts and diagnostics are designed to be user-friendly," Kardeni explained. "And by user, I mean a human who has that dictionary." She shrugged. "It would have been easier to change the language to Standard Galactic, but... you know..."

Branden, who had been leaning uncomfortably against a table by the far wall, just kept staring at them, his jaw falling open further and further. "Gallifreyan? Zeera, what are you...?"

Kardeni stopped typing and jumped to her feet, turning on the others. "Look, _I_ didn't know about any of this when I first started here. And I can prove it! I started with Stenman-Hoyer just before they bought the Galia system. It was Mr. Hoyer's idea. My first day, he handed me a gravity scan of the system, and asked me to fill in the paperwork to secure naming and purchase rights."

She flicked her wrist.

A map of the fabric of space-time appeared, floating above her palm, each planet represented by its gravitational dent.

"That's why Galia-3 is listed as a planet," Kardeni said. " _I_ named it." She counted off the gravitational dents. "Galia-1, Galia-2, Galia-3. See? I assumed there was a planet here." She flicked her wrist again, and the hologram disappeared. "I swear, when I first started working here, I didn't know the Time Lords ever even came to this system!"

Branden looked lost.

Jenny sighed, and knelt down beside the Gallifreyan keyboard. "But they did — and they fought a battle here." She began leafing through the dictionary, typing things into the keyboard as she did so. "I'm guessing Galia-3 was the casualty of that battle."

"That's our best guess, too," said Kardeni. She squinted at the screen, then leaned down and took the keyboard from Jenny. "No, no. The inputs require _actual, correct_ Gallifreyan. It's only the outputs that use the garbled mistranslation." She deftly began to correct Jenny's typing.

"You realize that's mad, right?" Jenny asked. "No one could ever use a system like that."

"No one except me and a handful of others — that's sort of the point." Kardeni sighed, as she backspaced an entire phrase. "You can't even blame the dictionary for this last one. It's basic grammar. _Present-non-temporal_ tense follows temporal-non-present tense. That's just a rule of thumb. I don't know why you used present-time-loop tense."

Jenny let Kardeni take over, studying her closely. "You know Gallifreyan?"

"Not really, I just kind of picked up enough to get by," Kardeni dismissed. She pressed enter, and an entire new screen of error text appeared before them. "Oh. That looks bad. Hang on." She jumped up, running to the screen, analyzing it line by line. "Okay. Yeah. That's really bad. It's like whoever is doing this is using some other TARDIS to keep the tear open."

Jenny sucked in a sharp breath. "Our TARDIS."

"That's my guess." Kardeni began pacing the room, head down, brow furrowed, as she tried to work out something she could do.

"Do either of you want to explain to me what's going on?" Branden demanded. He gestured at the room around them. "This stuff's Time Lord tech. I get that. But what does it have to do with the ghosts? And how is any of it going to wind up killing us?"

Kardeni didn't answer. She was too busy pacing and thinking things through.

"At a guess," Jenny said, "the world we're on now is a smoke-screen. The actual mining is done a dimension below this one..."

"Half-dimension," Kardeni cut in.

"A half-dimension below this one," said Jenny. "The reason we're seeing ghosts, at the moment, is because someone's trying to tear open the other dimension and let the prisoners out." She crossed her arms, turning back to Kardeni. "Is that about right?"

"There's stuff locked up in there that you can't imagine," Kardeni warned, stopping her pacing. "Mistakes that should never be let into the real world." She pointed at the screen. "This isn't a liberation. It's a death-sentence — for us and everything else on this planet. Maybe beyond." Kardeni turned on Jenny, suddenly angry. "Why did you come here? What do you want with the _Apos'alu_?"

"The what?" Jenny glanced over at Branden — but he didn't seem to recognize the name. She held up her hands. "Slow down. I only came to Galia-4 to see how plate tectonics worked. I'm not here to arrest anybody — much less release a bunch of monsters."

Kardeni eyed Jenny once more, suspiciously. Then she seemed to accept it, and knelt down before a different keyboard labeled in sharpie — typing out something else.

The input and output was far more complex and harder to read than the previous Gallifreyan. Jenny couldn't understand it at all. Kardeni studied it a few moments, then looked relieved.

"No penetration of the innermost partition." Kardeni typed something in the same complex Gallifreyan. "I'll try to reinforce it. I don't really know what I'm doing, though." She typed in a few more symbols. When Jenny didn't offer anything, Kardeni continued, "Any hints you can give..."

Jenny grimaced. "Don't look at me. I can't even read that."

Kardeni glanced up at her. "Wait — you don't read Old High Gallifreyan?" Kardeni shook her head. "Weird." She returned her eyes to the screen, and resumed her typing.

Jenny wanted to ask how it was that _Kardeni_ knew Old High Gallifreyan, but Kardeni interrupted her first.

"I guess that's why I'm trusting you," said Kardeni, as she kept typing. "You're a kid. It's pretty obvious you had no hand in what happened here. I can't say the same about your dad." She shuddered. "Galia-4 is home to billions of years' worth of life and history. I don't want it to get wiped out. I can't ever risk that."

"But Dad wouldn't..." Jenny started.

"Yeah? Rumor has it, Galia-3 was once a heavily populated planet. Full of sentient life." Kardeni finished typing, and pressed enter. A series of lines flashed up on the screen. She began typing again. "Fly through it now, and you can see just what was left after the Time Lords were done with it."

Jenny gave a hmph on behalf of her cultural heritage. "You don't know for sure that was the Time Lords."

Kardeni shot her a look. "The Dalek base was on Galia-11. And most of the Time Lord remains from Galia-3 wound up getting flung through space and colliding with the Galia-4 planetoid. So yeah. We can be pretty sure."

Jenny wasn't sure what to say to this.

Branden came to her rescue. "Hold on. We smashed the Galia-11 and Galia-4 planetoids together."

Kardeni paused a moment in her typing. Hesitated. Then began typing again, more quickly, saying nothing.

"I believe," Jenny put in, instead, as she worked all this out, "that was the idea." She ran her hands through her hair, sucking in a sharp breath. No wonder she'd found a fossilized piece of Gallifreyan tech inside the rocks! "Stenman-Hoyer's not really a mining company. Their business makes money by digging up and selling old Time War weapons."

Branden's jaw fell open. "What?!"

Kardeni snapped her head around, putting a finger to her lips. "Keep it down! You want the whole building to find out?"

"Uh... yes!" Branden said. He flung his arm out at the door. "If that's what Stenman-Hoyer Co. really does — I think its employees have a right to know!"

Kardeni didn't seem impressed. "Oh, please! The only reason _you_ didn't know was because you didn't _want_ to know." She went back to typing. "We wheeled a whole vat of deadly Dalek poison right past your desk — with full biohazard seals, hazmat suits, and portable quarantine protections. You didn't bat an eye at it."

Branden stammered for an excuse, but found he didn't have one.

"You never thought it was weird that our head geologist used to work as head of R&D at Temporal Weapons Inc.?" Kardeni pressed. "When we asked you to create a species that could survive a massive overdose of nucleo-temporal radiation — you never scratched your head and wondered why?"

Jenny tilted her head. "Nucleo-temporal radiation?"

"Leaky trans-temporal nuclear grenade," Kardeni dismissed. She finished typing, nodded at the result, then backed out of the Old High Gallifreyan directory and into one that still used the normal Gallifreyan, switching keyboards. "There was an accident with... well, it doesn't matter."

Jenny nodded, slowly. Her mind flashed back to the impact crater. The pickaxes. The brushes and trowels. "You get a lot of little 'accidents', don't you? I'll bet at least one or two, you covered up with mass extinction-type events. Smashing a plastic asteroid into the planet. Setting off a volcano or two. Things like that."

"The deaths were minimal," Kardeni said, still not looking at Jenny.

"From the volcano and asteroid type things? Yeah, I'll bet." Jenny sighed. "Because everyone had already died from the Time War weaponry you dug up."

Kardeni got up from the Gallifreyan keyboard and went towards an English one. She began typing in English characters, in response to the Gallifreyan prompts.

"I can tell you're not comfortable with any of this," Jenny pointed out. She needed to get Kardeni on side, or she'd never get anything else out of her! "Were you the one who suggested they mine everything by hand, slowly and carefully — to avoid accidents?"

Kardeni shook her head. "That was Mr. Stenman's idea." She sucked in a sharp breath. "I never felt comfortable with that part. I knew where it would lead." She ventured a glance up at Jenny. "I promise you — when all this first started, I had no idea what I was getting into. None."


	19. Chapter 19

It wasn't clear why the moss hadn't grown over the rolling sand dunes they'd discovered a short ways away, but the Doctor took full advantage. He was now squatting down in the sand, using his powered-down sonic screwdriver to draw a small circle, circumscribed by a much bigger circle.

"Two circles," Lantro said, dully.

The Doctor shook his head. "A planet..." he drew a tree on the outer circle, to show it was a planet, "and a TARDIS." He drew a stick figure with a bow tie and fez at the top of the inner circle, to indicate 'Time Lord'.

Lantro frowned.

"The TARDIS buried on this planet wasn't in working order," the Doctor explained, standing up and blowing sand off the sonic screwdriver. "At a guess, it was corrupted — just the way that fossilized TARDIS coral was. That's the result of a rather nasty Dalek weapon, used in the early battles of the War, which was designed to ground TARDISes."

"How did it do that?" Lantro asked.

"Oh, some corruption introduced into the dinoflagellate symbiodinium during the phagocytosis process, which disperses this sort of nasty whatchamacallit into the coral, causing it to die the moment it enters the vortex," the Doctor dismissed. "My point is —since Stenman and Hoyer couldn't use the TARDIS as a time machine, they cannibalized it and turned it into..." He threw out his hands, gesturing at the world around him, "...this."

Lantro looked around himself. "This?"

"A temporal vault." The Doctor dropped his hands. "I take it you know what a temporal vault is?"

"A vault that preserves timelines deleted from the universe," Lantro replied. "We have them at the Agency. But they're usually... smaller."

"Yes, well, those ones aren't dimensionally transcendental," the Doctor explained. He began to draw spokes between the two circles — making the drawing look a bit like a wagon wheel. " _This_ vault, however, is big enough that it's taken on a structure that Seo will find quite familiar. Looks like a wheel. Sort of." The Doctor drew an extra circle around the outside. "But with an extra smoke-screen planet on the surface, which appears mostly empty. You know — just so the Time Agency doesn't suspect anything." The Doctor pointed to one of the spokes, where it intersected the outer circle. "But this is where all the _real_ mining is done. Right here, in the vault, where nosy Time Agents won't be able to see." He coughed. "Or will be too lazy to look."

Lantro crossed his arms. "You're not going to let that go, are you?"

"Well, let's face it, Lantro..." The Doctor tapped his sonic on his own head. "You're not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer." He shrugged. "And since the Agency knows that and still sent you here... I'm guessing they're secretly getting weapons from Stenman-Hoyer, as well. On the down low."

Lantro blinked, staring at him. Slowly, his jaw dropped.

"Sorry, but... it stands to reason," the Doctor said. "Either you're corrupt, or they are. And this cover-up is quite clever. So I know it can't be you." He tapped Lantro's head. "Requires mental acuity."

Sighing, Lantro pushed back his hair. "Thanks, Doctor. You really know how to boost a guy's ego."

* * *

"Wait, wait, wait — Zeera!" Branden cut in, sharply. "This can't be right." He spread open his hands. "I've worked here for years. And yeah, I've seen the occasional bio-hazard warning or radiation warning... but nothing to indicate this is some kind of temporal weapons..."

"There are four teleport bays," Kardeni cut in. "You have access to silver. You broke into red — which connects to mining operations." She hopped over to the Standard Galactic keyboard, and pulled up a schematic onto the screen. "There's also blue and yellow."

"I'm guessing one of those leads to a complex that analyzes the weapons you dug up," Jenny said, "and the other one manufactures working copies?"

Kardeni nodded. "Yellow analyzes. Blue manufactures."

"But this is just... absurd!" Branden cut in. He stepped forwards. "If you had to mine everything by hand — you'd need generations and generations of miners! And even if you had them feverishly working around the clock, it'd take you hundreds or even thousands of years to...!"

He trailed off.

His face went pale.

"The Time Agency doesn't actually need very much paperwork, does it?" Jenny asked Kardeni. "You doctored forms and cited fake regulations — all to get the information Stenman and Hoyer needed. And all the employees believed you knew what you were talking about, because you were such good friends with Lantro."

Kardeni bit her lower lip.

"So now, people like Branden — who knew nothing," Jenny pointed out, "are involved in a criminal enterprise. Their signatures are on all the forms."

Kardeni paused in her typing. Stared down at the keyboard, unable to look at either of them. In a soft voice, she admitted, "I'm not proud of what I did." Sighed. "I just didn't see any other way."

Branden was practically shaking with rage. "Really. You didn't."

"I'm sorry." Kardeni typed something in with the Standard Galactic keyboard, pulling up the diagnostics again. She cursed beneath her breath. Then, to Jenny, "Go to the Gallifreyan keyboard and program in a loop function in line 5. If I input the same thing in Standard Galactic at the same time, it sometimes forces it through the system."

Jenny went over to the keyboard, and began typing in the code.

"No, no, not like...!" Kardeni jumped to her feet. "Never mind. You take over the Standard Galactic keyboard. I'll take over the Gallifreyan. Your spelling and grammar are appalling."

Jenny grimaced, as she let Kardeni take over. She knelt down by the Standard Galactic keyboard and began to type in her own code.

Branden, from behind, inched towards her. Leaning down to whisper into her ear, he asked, "How does Kardeni know so much Gallifreyan? I thought she was just the secretary."

"You read my mind," Jenny muttered. She glanced at the far door. "Any chance you could sneak out and do a little sleuthing through Kardeni's office? Find out some stuff?"

Kardeni flicked her eyes over to them. "You two talking about me?"

"I just was asking Jenny if she thought you'd let me out to use the bathroom," Branden cut in, before Jenny could get a chance. He edged towards the door. "I mean, with everything here being so secret..."

Kardeni waved him off. "Go for it. I doubt you'll say anything." She returned to her programming. "After all, you saw what happened to me, when I just mentioned having a few misgivings about the whole thing. That was slow-acting poison. If you tell the whole thing — they'll break out the fast-acting stuff. I don't doubt that for a minute."

Branden grimaced. Glanced over at Jenny one more time. Then gave a sharp nod, and ran off.

"You ready?" Kardeni asked Jenny. Jenny nodded, and they both pressed enter at the same time.

The screen went black.

Then the diagnostic came back up. Kardeni skimmed it, and cursed softly beneath her breath. "No. We're too late. That's not going to work anymore." She ran back to the Gallifreyan keyboard and began typing in something new. "I'll try something else."

* * *

"But that doesn't explain it all. Not by a long chalk!" The Doctor waved over into the distance, where the mountains once were. "Have you noticed that...?" He paused. Scratched his head. "No. Of course you haven't. Sorry. Forgot who I was talking to." He adjusted his bow tie, trying to think up how to explain this in a way even an idiot could understand. "Mountains! On some worlds, there are mountains. Next world, none. Whole different geologic history, everywhere we go."

Lantro absorbed this, silently.

Then shook his head. "I don't get it."

"No," the Doctor sighed, "I didn't think you would." Whipping out his sonic screwdriver, he began tracing a spiral through the spokes of the wheel he'd drawn. "We've been jumping across spokes," he said. Paused. Frowned. "Well, except that one time when we dropped off the kids." He went back and amended the spiral so it went slightly down one of the spokes. "There. Better."

Lantro stared at the diagram, blankly.

"Anything?" The Doctor waved his hand in front of Lantro's eyes. "Nothing? No?" He sighed. "It's like explaining to a toaster."

"Thanks," Lantro grumbled.

"There was a Time War battle here," the Doctor said. "But its detritus wound up buried — not in three dimensions — but in five."

Lantro nodded, slowly.

"Now, normally," the Doctor continued, "big, planet-shaking events help bring minerals and gems to the surface. Earthquakes! Volcanoes!" He tapped the diagram in the sand. "But when you're dealing with five dimensional detritus, you need a great big catastrophic shift in history to go along with it."

"Okay," said Lantro.

"Problem is," the Doctor clasped his hands behind his back, and began pacing in front of Lantro, "when you've just dug up a bunch of gold and weapons and things on the planet, and you need to shake history up to get some more — what happens?"

Lantro just shrugged. "You... get more?"

The Doctor snapped his head up. "Come on, Lanty-boy. Give your brain a workout for a change."

Lantro grumbled, but didn't seem any the wiser.

"What happens," the Doctor said, "is you go back a few billion years and change the entire history of this planet — and poof!" The Doctor flung up his hands. "All that gold and those killy guns and the explody bits... gone. After all, planet's different. History's different. That means you were never walking around on the surface, mining. So you never dug anything up."

"And that's bad?" Lantro asked.

"Yes!" the Doctor said. Paused. Then, adjusting his bow tie, added, "Well, unless you're me. I find it brilliant. A hundred angry dictators who bought nasty temporal weapons — all finding out, one day, those weapons have just popped out of existence." His eyes twinkled.

"Then we're fine," Lantro said.

The Doctor ducked down to his diagram in the sand. "That's what they needed a cannibalized TARDIS for." He beckoned for Lantro to come down closer. Held up a finger. "Beaver-badger people planet." Waggled the finger. "Good bits mined out. Ecosystem destroyed by evil-smelling Dalek poison." He shoved the finger down in the sand, over one of the spokes. "Archived in the temporal vault." He held up a finger on his other hand. "The evil-killy-orange-moss planet." Waggled the finger. "Good bits mined out. Everything else eaten for lunch by the evil-killy moss." He shoved his finger down along another one of the spokes. "Archived in the vault."

Lantro nodded.

The Doctor took his hands away. Instead, he pulled back out his sonic screwdriver. "Now, Seo, by contrast, isn't taking the same route as us." He drew an arrow down one of the spokes. "She's going that way." He circled the point where their spiral intersected with her downward arrow. "And that's where we're going to run into her."

Lantro frowned. "But I thought each spoke was an archived timeline. How can she be traveling _down_ an archived timeline?"

The Doctor grinned. "Five dimensionally."

* * *

"You're all a rough draft of Yimi's world," Seo explained to the crowd around her. "One that Stenman-Hoyer created, got wrong, and then rewrote the second you started this rebellion." She cringed. "Sorry."

This didn't seem to placate the crowd. They muttered to one another, their cacophony sounding increasingly confused — and angry.

"That's why Yimi's like you, but with a slightly better set of adaptations," Seo explained, nodding over at Yimi. "At the moment, her world's the current draft — well, until things spiral out of control there, too. Then they'll hop back in time to when the Patasi first developed, change things around, and move Yimi's world down to the second-highest rung on the ladder."

Yimi's jaw dropped. "I don't..." She stepped back, her feathers fluttering. "You mean they're going to erase me?"

Seo sighed. "Not... 'erase' exactly..." She shrugged. "You'll become like the world where I was born. A redundant timeline, doomed to repeat itself over and over again."

Hyoli stepped forwards, towering over the still upside-down and swinging Seo. "Wait a second, here!" He smacked his stick into her wrists, and she cried out. "Are you saying we're not real? Just some draft of a story that someone scribbled onto a piece of paper and then threw into the bin?"

"What? No!" Seo tried to put her hands on her own chest, but instead, just wound up swinging herself harder back and forth. "I told you — I grew up in a place like this. I must have seen a hundred different Buffys and a hundred different Doctors and a hundred different Xanders and Willows and Gileses. And they were all just as real as I was."

Yimi shifted from foot to foot, uncomfortably. "When you spoke to Gevry," she said, softly, "you asked him why he set up our religion to worship Abozalu. You asked why he hadn't set up a religion to worship the humans as gods."

"We were never allowed to worship Abozalu," Hyoli snapped, turning on Yimi, his eyes furious. "The only religion allowed was the one the humans required — which worshipped the false gods of Stenman and Hoyer!"

Seo nodded at Yimi. "Exactly, Yimi. They _did_. When it all fell apart and the Patasi burned down the cathedral, this draft got archived. McMann and his pals took the name of the god from _this_ version of history, went back in time, and spread a version of that mythology that still accomplished their mining goals."

"And my tusks?" Yimi asked.

Seo cringed. "The High Priest didn't just kill people who were late for worship, did he? He killed babies born without tusks, or kids who couldn't sing properly. And you, when we first met, wanted to do the same."

Yimi stepped back. "No. No, no, not like..."

"Exactly like!" Seo nodded at the crowd beside them. "Listen to them, Yimi. You look almost identical, and they're still ready to throw you into the fire." She flicked her eyes over to Hyoli, her voice dropping down so it was low and dangerous and furious. "It's a culling culture. Eugenics. Stenman-Hoyer never does it directly, but they always make sure there's someone in power who can eliminate the genetics they don't like."

"I'm just purifying the race for Abozalu," Hyoli insisted. "Nothing but the best for Him." He pointed at Yimi. "Not like you!"

"Freak!" shouted someone in the crowd.

"Mutant!" shouted someone else in the crowd.

"Abomination!" another person in the crowd shouted, throwing a shoe at Yimi. It struck her in the forehead.

Yimi held her forehead in her hands, stumbling backwards. She looked up, the hints of tears in her eyes. "But... but I said that!" Her lower lip shook. "But I meant in spirit. I never meant..." She looked down at herself. Then up at the others. "I didn't think I meant..."

Yimi trailed off as she realized she was sobbing. In each teardrop lay an imperfection that she had wanted to 'purify' in others.

And now, all she could see in the teardrops' reflections was herself.


	20. Chapter 20

Lantro sat on the sand beside the diagram, staring at it and saying nothing, as the Doctor finished his explanation about the spokes and the rough drafts.

He seemed stunned.

"You realize this sounds crazy," Lantro said, at last. He gestured at the diagram. "All of it. Gigantic vaults! Rough drafts! It's..." He paused. Then slumped. "It's all true, isn't it?"

The Doctor was already tucking away his sonic screwdriver. "Oh, yes. Every word."

Lantro pointed at the TARDIS at the center. "And they placed the cannibalized TARDIS at the center of this whole thing? So if we travel down far enough, we'll find it?"

"Yes!" the Doctor said with a grin. Paused. The grin slid down his face. "No." Paused again. Scratched his head. "Maybe."

Lantro raised his eyebrows.

"Well, it's all just an artist's rendition, really," said the Doctor, using his sleeve to wipe out the drawing. "Something I knocked off from where Seo grew up. Could be that here, there's nothing in the center! Or a cannibalized TARDIS! Or a...!"

The Doctor drifted off.

For a long moment, he said nothing.

"No," he decided, turning on his heel and scaling the nearest sand dune. "No, that's daft." He clonked himself on the head. "It's a false positive, that's all. Has to be. No chance of finding any other Time Lords in here."

Then he sat down, and — with a shove — slid himself over the far side of the sand dune.

"Geronimoooooo! Ow!"

* * *

"So that explains Stenman-Hoyer," said Jenny. "Doesn't explain you." She crossed her arms, eyeing Kardeni up and down. "Putting aside your uncanny ability to speak Gallifreyan — and the fact that I suspect you've been fiddling with the stuff in this room a lot more than Stenman knows — you seem really worried about something getting out of this dimensional partition of yours. What did you call it? Abu-dabu?"

" _Apos'alu_ ," Kardeni corrected. She typed a string of text out onto the screen. "I found a message in the Old High Gallifreyan partition of the Battle TARDIS, a while ago. Hang on, I'll show you." She brought up the Old High Gallifreyan for Jenny on the screen. "'A warning to my fellow Time Lords: the War Council is...' I think that word's 'deceiving' or 'concealing something from'... 'you. The Apos'alu is trapped...' or wedged, maybe?" She pointed at the next line. "Then there's some stuff I don't understand. Then, something, something '...the inner partition. If it is ever opened, the...' something '...will emerge. The Apos'alu will regain its former power, and Gallifrey...' something, something. Then there's more stuff I don't understand." She scrolled down. And down. And down. "A lot more." Scrolled down again. "Oh, here we go. 'Do not trust the War Council or Rassilon. They will bring only...' I'm assuming that last word is something like 'ruin' or 'despair'." She grimaced, turning back to Jenny. "It's written in much more complex language than the computer code. I'm doing my best."

Jenny couldn't read any of it at all. She pointed to the name signed at the bottom. "Who's it from?"

"'Biv,' apparently." Kardeni glanced over at Jenny. "That name mean anything to you?"

It sounded vaguely familiar, but Jenny couldn't remember where she'd heard it before. "We have to find some way to send this to Dad."

Kardeni lunged out and grabbed Jenny by the arm. "No chance."

Jenny struggled. "But...!"

"He's a Time Lord!" Kardeni interrupted. She glanced at the words on the screen. "Whoever wrote that message knew other Time Lords would be after this thing. For all I know, your Dad's here to let it out!"

"He's not," Jenny insisted. "He'd never..."

"Well, he's doing it now!" Kardeni shouted, holding her more tightly. " _His_ arrival was when the dimensions first started losing coherence. And now, _his_ TARDIS is tearing the dimensions open even wider!" She got right into Jenny's face. "So just what are you three really here to do? Who really sent you? And how am I supposed to trust...?"

Someone leapt out of the shadows.

Jenny only just had time to glance over her shoulder as she felt herself grabbed from behind and ripped out of Kardeni's grip. Kardeni was staring at the person who had just emerged.

"What...? Who...?" Kardeni began.

The person grabbed up an old discarded monitor and thudded it on Kardeni's head. Kardeni's eyes rolled up, and she dropped to the floor with a thud.

"The name," said the person, clonking the monitor back onto the ground, "is Faye Mutajar." She reached into her pocket and brought out a chunky black vortex manipulator, and secured it around her wrist. "Remember it. It's one of the names you'll be cursing from your prison cell for the rest of your life."

* * *

As far as Yimi was concerned, the moment Seo finished explaining, everything seemed to happen at once. The cathedral collapsed behind them, spewing fiery debris across the landscape. The crowd screamed and tried to flee — dropping Yimi as they did so. Yimi took out Iporil's switchblade from her pocket and ran for Seo, cutting through her ropes and catching her as she fell.

"The captives!" Hyoli shouted, "they're getting away!"

But his voice was drowned out by the sound of a helicopter flying overhead, shooting down at the natives below. Yimi felt her heart pounding, as she watched the Patasi around her fall to the ground, howling in pain.

Seo grabbed Yimi by the hand, yanking her out of the way of the next hail of gunfire. And next thing Yimi knew, they were both running through the forest, desperate to get away from the Patasi and the humans and this whole crazy world that wanted to kill them.

"About what you said," Yimi said, her voice shaking as she ran, "about this being a draft of my world..." She yelped, as a Patasi arrow shot out of the darkness and nearly skewered her in the shoulder. Seo pulled her away, turning to the right — away from the scuffle that had produced the arrow. Yimi grimaced, then went on in a whisper, "...is there any way for me to get home?"

"Sort of?" Seo grimaced. "My rock-portal technique only works in one direction, actually. So that way's out. But I'm sure I'll figure out some way back, eventually." She shrugged. "Doesn't matter. We're not doing that yet."

Yimi felt her heart sink. "But if what you said is true, I have to warn my people...!"

"If you warn your people, Yimi," Seo cut in, sharply, "Stenman-Hoyer will consider that a 'failure'. They'll archive your timeline, stick it in their temporal vault, then travel back in time and correct their mistake. Or create something totally different. Or... who knows!" She gritted her teeth, tension and repressed anger flooding through her. "I grew up surrounded by redundant timelines. I've seen how this works. It's like what happened to Mom and all her happy endings — but on a planetary scale!"

Yimi didn't get the reference, but decided not to pry. She had enough of her own issues at the moment. "Then we have to find Abozalu. He will stop all this."

"If Abozalu's the Master," Seo muttered, "he's probably the one causing it in the first place." She sighed, continuing her sprint. "What about that other guy? The rainbow one."

"Rainbow one?" Yimi asked.

"Yeah, you remember!" Seo said. "Roy!" She paused, scratched her head. "No, that's not right..." Her eyes lit up. "Biv! That's it. What's his deal?"

Yimi glared at Seo. "He's the enemy of Abozalu."

"Oh, well he sounds like a great guy, then," Seo decided. "We're definitely rescuing him."

Yimi seethed.

"Look, Yimi," Seo said, "I know you're under the Master's hypnotic influence — but think about it. If he is behind all this, and trust me, he is, then his plans are about to destroy your own people. Who are you going to side with, in the end? Them? Or him?"

"Him," said Yimi.

Seo rolled her eyes. "Now you're just being difficult." She beamed, pointing just ahead of them and laughing, as she spotted the giant boulder jutting out of the ground. "Hey, look, it's on the surface this time! No more falling down mine shafts for Seo!"

Seo dragged Yimi forwards, towards the giant boulder. It was a very old rock. Ancient. As Seo placed a hand on the surface of the boulder, its surface seemed to turn to a liquid, rippling and gleaming like the surface of a pond.

Yimi gasped.

"Oh, right!" Seo laughed. "You didn't see this last time, because I had to access it as we fell past." She grabbed Yimi by the wrist, her eyes dancing. "Last one there's a rotten egg!"

And before Yimi knew what was happening, Seo had pulled her through.


	21. Chapter 21

Lantro hurried over to the Doctor, whose 'ow' had been in reaction to his colliding with something at the bottom of the sand dune. At first, Lantro thought the Doctor must have collided with a sort of moppish-looking brown bush. But as Lantro got closer, he could see that it wasn't a bush at all. It was a head of brown hair from a human corpse — mostly buried in the sand. Beside the corpse were a series of bleached human bones, laid out to create the words:

REMEMBER ME

The Doctor was leaning down, sadly, examining the body. His sadness turned to puzzled alarm, as he dug the body out far enough to turn her over — and could see her face.

It was Faye Mutajar.

"That's the third time I've seen her today," Lantro remarked. He frowned, turning to the Doctor. "How's that possible? Is it something the vault does? Replicating her every time it archives a timeline she's in?"

The Doctor frowned. "Don't know. Depends how the vault's been set up." He dug out more of the body, and noticed — again — the tan-line of the vortex manipulator on her wrist. "But why _only_ her? Why the same person, with the same message, twice?" He blinked. Looked back up at Lantro. "Sorry, did you say three times?"

Lantro shrugged. "In that cave. But you said you were thinking."

"Ah — note to self. Stop thinking." The Doctor turned back to Mutajar. "How did she look?"

"I don't know," Lantro admitted. "She was under a boulder. All I could see was her hand."

The Doctor raised up her wrist. "Like this? Same tan line and everything?"

Lantro nodded.

"And that's the other thing," the Doctor said, dropping the wrist. "Same person, same message, but a different death. And she's never wearing her vortex manipulator. So where's it gone? And why isn't it here?"

Lantro said nothing. He just helped the Doctor dig out the corpse.

The Doctor caught Lantro by the wrist, where his own vortex manipulator still rested.

"Come to think of it," the Doctor said, raising it up, "why didn't the moss detect your vortex manipulator and come after you? It may be a smoking wreck — but it's not powered down."

Lantro shook his head. "Okay, you got me. Why?"

"I don't know." The Doctor let go of the vortex manipulator. Looked between Lantro and Mutajar's wrist, his brow furrowed. Then, finally, he shook his head. "Probably doesn't matter."

The Doctor started to get up, but Lantro grabbed him by the wrist to stop him.

"Doctor, really — what is it?" Lantro looked between the Doctor and Mutajar. "Is it something about her? Did you work something out?"

The Doctor raised his eyebrows, eyes flicking between Mutajar — dead, and _without_ a vortex manipulator — and Lantro — alive, and _with_ a vortex manipulator. "You tell me."

Lantro's jaw fell open. "You can't be thinking...?" He let go of the Doctor, jumping to his feet. "No. No!" Raised his hands. "Doctor, you've got to believe me — I would _never_...!"

He trailed off, as the wind picked up and sand began to rebury the body, as well as the bones beside it. Flashes of bleached-white bone began appearing elsewhere along the sand dunes... places where other bodies had been dumped.

Lantro shuddered.

The Doctor appeared beside him. He had taken out his sonic screwdriver and was scanning it across the sand dunes. Lantro tried to grab it out of his hands — afraid the moss would come for them again — but the Doctor had already turned it off and tucked it away before Lantro's hand got close.

"Probably not," the Doctor said, finally. He clasped his hands behind his back. "But you know something about this, Lantro. Something you're not telling me."

Agent Lantro said nothing for a long, long time.

Then, finally, he began to walk past the Doctor. "Is there any more of that metamorphic rock nearby?"

"I'm sure we can find some, though it may take a while," the Doctor replied, catching him up. "Why?"

"Because if this place is really as dangerous as you say," Lantro said, "then I think we should get to your companion as soon as possible."

The Doctor sighed, slapping his hand to his forehead. "No, I didn't think you'd answer my question. Thank you for that. Very helpful."

"I'm _going to_ answer it," Lantro corrected, "on the way." He sighed. "Just remember — by telling you the truth and compromising Agency secrets, I'm putting my job on the line, here."

The Doctor grinned, and clapped Lantro on the back. "Hate to break it to you, Lanty-boy," he said, "but once this all comes out in the open — your job is pretty much kaput. No help needed from me."

* * *

Jenny stared at Mutajar, not sure she believed what had just happened. Then, snapping herself out of her stupor, turned around and ran to Kardeni, dropping to the ground and checking her vitals.

"She needs medical help," Jenny said, taking her pulse. One heart. Interesting. She looked up at Mutajar with a glare. "That could have killed her, you idiot!"

Mutajar frowned, as she pressed some buttons on her vortex manipulator. "Still scrambled. Damn." Looked up. Noticed Jenny's glare. "What?" She pointed at Kardeni. "Don't sympathize with her! You've got no idea how many times I've been killed this morning." She leaned down, patting Kardeni down and checking all of her pockets. "I almost didn't make it back in time to rescue you."

Jenny blinked. "You've been killed...?"

"Yeah — long story." Mutajar scowled, as her search only revealed some Kleenex, a few toys and crayons, and a small pocket bible. "You've got to be kidding me! Where else could she have...?" She shook her head, then jumped to her feet. "Never mind. I'll deal with it later." She glanced around, analyzing and then pocketing a few components from the derelict machinery around them, before turning back to Jenny. "Time to go." She grabbed her by the arm and tugged her upright. "The VM's out of action, so we'll have to run for it."

She tried to drag Jenny out of the room, but Jenny twisted her arm around and shoved Mutajar away from her. Mutajar, startled, dropped Jenny's arm and stumbled back.

"Look, Jenny, I'm not who you think I am," Mutajar insisted, raising up her hands. "I'm not really a geologist — I'm..."

"An undercover Time Agent," Jenny said. "I got that." She ran back over to the monitor. "Fine, then. Since you knocked out my helper — _you_ can help me fix all this."

Mutajar stormed over and grabbed Jenny by the wrist again. This time, she had a much tighter grip. "I don't think so."

"We're heading towards a full dimensional collapse!" Jenny insisted, struggling against Mutajar even as Mutajar dragged her to the door. "You have no idea what could be unleashed if...!"

"I have every idea," Mutajar said, practically yanking Jenny off her feet and dragging her out the door and down the corridor. "This company's been creating and imprisoning sentient species for far too long. If Lantro won't make his move, I will."

"You...?" Jenny felt a shudder run through her. "What have you done?"

"There's a secret room beneath Sector 3," said Mutajar, turning a corner into the main hallway. "In it, there's a machine that's keeping this world half a dimension apart from the real one. _That's_ how they're getting away with all this. _That's_ how they're enslaving species after species without anyone knowing about it!" Her eyes flashed. "And now that I've finally gotten into the Main Complex... I'm putting a stop to it."


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, yes! We're finally at chapter 22! I've been very excited to get to chapter 22. As part of this story, I wrote summaries of each scene, just to see what was necessary and what could get cut. For this scene, the summary was as long as - or maybe a little longer than - the actual scene. And I kind of love it.

"I'm not the first Time Agent sent to investigate the Galia system," Lantro explained to the Doctor, as they made their way across the sand dunes and towards a large rock formation that — fingers crossed — would contain the metamorphic rock. "The Agency sent someone else before me. _That_ Time Agent disappeared. I never knew who it was."

The Doctor nodded, slowly. "And you've been putting the priority on finding out what happened to her? At the expense of trying to work out the reason she disappeared?"

Lantro glanced over at the Doctor. "Yeah... about that. If Mutajar was here on a mission, it wasn't anything to do with Plate Cracking. She didn't seem remotely interested in that."

The Doctor frowned. "Then what was she...?"

"From the scant few discussions we had," said Lantro, "she appeared to be looking for something." He mimed a small object. "Fob watch. About so big. Weird astral symbols on the front. Broken, but never opened." Lantro dropped his hand and shrugged. "She seemed to think Zeera had it."

The Doctor seemed intrigued. "Zeera Kardeni. The historian friend you don't give lifts home to anymore." He stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Did she have one?"

"One what?"

"A fob watch." The Doctor mimed its size. "Like you were saying."

"I don't know — I never asked," Lantro said. He shrugged. "She used to buy all kinds of weird old junk when we were in college together. She attached them to her backpack like keychains. You could hear her jangling a mile away."

The Doctor's eyes widened a little. "You knew her back in college?"

"Oh, sure," Lantro dismissed, as they climbed up another sand dune. "She was Craig's girlfriend, you know? So whenever Craig and I hung out, she was always somewhere nearby — backpack jangling, stack of books under each arm. I didn't think much of her back then, but she was fun to joke around with. That laugh of hers..." He grinned, his eyes far away. "Some days, I think I live for that laugh." The grin faded. "Lived."

The Doctor climbed up the sand dune, his face bent in a pensive frown.

"She came to me, about two months ago," Lantro continued, climbing to the top of the sand dune. "Said she had some concerns about the company and what it was doing. The more she told me, the more I panicked. I acted rashly. She almost died as a result." He paused as he reached the top, staring at the rock formation growing ever closer with every step. His eyes grew sad. "It's the one thing I really regret. I shouldn't have put her in that kind of danger."

The Doctor turned to him, studying his face. He nodded, again. "I see. That's why you were so eager to blame me, the moment I turned up." Turned away, staring at the rock formation, as well. "Your friend Zeera is a bit gifted with Time Lord technology, isn't she? And you'd rather have the authorities think it was me helping Stenman-Hoyer — than blame her."

Lantro didn't answer.

"I'd like to speak to her," the Doctor said, "when we get back."

Lantro gave a little laugh. "Yeah." The laughter died away on the wind, turning into a dull whisper. "Yeah — me too."

Then he ran down the other side of the sand dune.

The Doctor ran after him, his frown deepening with every step.

"So basically," the Doctor guessed, as he caught Lantro up, "you and Zeera used to be best mates. But now, Stenman and Hoyer won't let you even speak to each other anymore." He pointed at Lantro. "They're holding her culpability over you, so you won't talk." Dropped the hand. "And they're holding something over her, too, I expect. Something she might want very badly. Something Mutajar wants very badly." He stuffed his hands back into his pockets. "That's concerning. Very concerning."

Lantro gave a dull laugh. "Yeah." Stared on into the distance. "I'm concerned about her too."

"What? Oh, no, not her," said the Doctor. Paused. Raised up a finger. "Actually, yes. Her too. Very her too. But not just her too." He gestured for Lantro to follow him, and ran up a smaller sand dune before them. "From what you've told me, Lantro — it sounds like someone out there's looking for a Time Lord. Not me. Another Time Lord." He scratched his head. "And I've been getting this itch inside my head since we got in here. Almost like..."

He trailed off.

Then dismissed the thought and kept running.

Lantro ran after him, climbing to the top of the sand dune.

"Nothing else?" the Doctor double-checked, shielding his eyes from the sun. "Faye Mutajar never asked about anything else? Nothing? Not one scrap of a bit of a thing? Just Zeera and that... fob...?" The Doctor trailed off, as the wind whipped at the sand below them, unburying another group of humanoid skeletons.

"Yeah," said Lantro. "Basically just..." He trailed off, as he noticed the same thing. "Oh."

The Doctor and Lantro ran down the other side of the sand dune, wiping more sand off the bleached white bones. They'd been picked clean.

"You know — I'm starting to think this isn't really sand," the Doctor pointed out, letting a handful of it run through his fingers. "I think your super-moss went very, _very_ wrong. And the people living here paid the price." He paused. Then amended, "The super-moss named by Zeera's child. That's troubling."

"One of eight children," said Lantro, sharply. "They name lots of stuff. It doesn't mean anything." He glared at the Doctor. "Zeera has nothing to do with any of this, Doctor. Leave her out of it."

The Doctor said nothing for the next few moments, as they continued to make their way across the desert. His brow was bent in thought.

"There's something I'm missing, here," the Doctor muttered, at last. He looked up at the sky, shading his eyes from the harsh sun. "Something that's niggling at the back of my brain. I'm trying to remember..." He sighed. "But there were so many battles, you know, during the War."

Lantro said nothing. Just stood up and kicked some sand back over the bones — a burial of sorts.

The Doctor squinted at the sun. "The sun. Galia-1. I keep looking up at it and asking myself... have I seen that sun somewhere before?" He looked out at the empty landscape around him. "Are these the bones of people I once spoke to and fought beside?"

Lantro frowned. "But the sun isn't..."

"No," the Doctor decided, finally. "No, I'm sure I wasn't in this battle. Positive. By the time I joined the War, the Time Lords already had a system in place for disarming that Dalek weapon that corrupted TARDIS coral." He paused. Then swung back around to Lantro. "Sorry, what were you saying?"

"The sun isn't Galia-1," said Lantro. "That naming convention went out the window centuries ago. The sun's 'Galia-prime'. The planets are the only ones that get the numbers."

The Doctor's brow furrowed, as he began counting out imaginary planets in front of him. "Then how is Galia-4 the third planet...?"

"They named the planets based on a gravity scan," said Lantro. "When they got here, they found out Galia-3 wasn't really a planet — just a gravitational anomaly."

The Doctor stared at Lantro, his hand dropping to his side. A look of horror spread across his face. "Nitvenah," he whispered.

Lantro stepped towards him. "Nitvenah? What's...?"

"Doesn't matter!" The Doctor began sprinting towards the rock formation ahead. "We have to find Seo _now_. Things are suddenly much, _much_ worse than I imagined!"


	23. Chapter 23

After the last world, filled with smoke and fire and screaming and war, Seo and Yimi found the silence of this new world almost oppressive. Maybe even ominous.

"There isn't even the buzz of an insect," Yimi said, looking around herself. "And all the trees look so old." She looked back at Seo. "What happened, here?"

"A catastrophe bad enough for Stenman-Hoyer to archive this draft, then go back in time and rewrite it," Seo said, as she rushed around, trying to find what had happened to the metamorphic rock she'd used to get here. It was as if it didn't exist, in this world. "Sorry, Yimi. This isn't going to be pleasant."

Yimi sucked in a sharp breath. "I can handle it," she decided. "If it gives me the chance to release Abozalu and stop you from killing him — I can handle anything."

Seo stepped back, scratching her head, as she realized that rock formation definitely wasn't here. "Weird..." She spun around, grinning at Yimi. "Come on. We better find another deposit of the stuff."

Yimi followed her.

They half walked, half ran through the woods, the silence boring down on them as if it were a living thing trying to smother them. For a few brief moments, Yimi remembered what Seo had told her about how Stenman-Hoyer had force-evolved species, and she began to panic — thinking perhaps the silence really _was_ a living thing, manufactured as some sort of predator, and that it had destroyed all her people!

Then she got a grip on herself, and realized that was silly. Silence couldn't actually kill people. That's ridiculous!

"Why are you bringing me with you?" Yimi asked Seo — just to break the silence, really, and help her nerves. "No, more than that — why do you keep saving my life?" She put a hand against her chest. "We aren't on the same side. We never have been. If I succeed, you fail."

Seo looked up, surprised. "You're my friend."

Yimi ruffled her feathers uncomfortably. That didn't make much more sense than any of the rest of it.

"No," Seo sighed. "I'm guessing they didn't let you have friends. That wasn't part of the deal." She tucked her thumbs into her pocket, eyes fixed ahead of them, a pensive frown on her face. "You know, Yimi, the sad thing is — I've seen evolution in action. This isn't it."

Yimi shook her head. "I don't understand."

"I mean that if you go back to the dawn of mankind," Seo said, trying to mime just how far back it was and realizing her arms didn't stretch that far, "way, way back before even the Slayer existed..." She ran forwards, her hand still outstretched — to better demonstrate. She waved at Yimi from a ways away. "All the way over here!"

Yimi waved back, uneasily.

"So if you go back all the way," Seo continued, as Yimi walked over, "you'd expect to find a sort of dog-eat-dog world. Right? Survival of the fittest! A bunch of hunter-gatherers, and if one gets too injured to walk, he gets cast out and fed to the wolves." She made a face. "Someone wrote a rubbish book about that, you know. A hundred a fifty pages of a man complaining about a broken leg. Now who'd want to read about that?"

"They should have just killed him," said Yimi. Then she hesitated, thinking of her lazy brother. "I mean..."

"But my point is, that's not what happened," Seo insisted. She grabbed Yimi by the shoulders. "Yimi, I was there. I saw it. The real early humans — they cared about each other. They found ways to defend the sick and the weak. They invented tools to help them transport the others. _That's_ what evolution is. Not about 'my genes are superior to yours' — but about the community we build for each other that lets us _all_ survive."

Yimi stared at her for a long, long moment, unable to speak.

Then, in a very small voice, "You have a really optimistic view of people."

"I like to think everyone should get the chance to prove themselves 'good'," Seo said, with a smile. She clasped her hands behind her back, giving a cheery skip. "Otherwise, the world would be a very depressing place. Oh, and I'd be dead. A lot."

"My people are not..." Yimi began. Then stopped herself.

"What? Not good? Sure they are!" Seo insisted. "Away from the influence of that war-TARDIS or whatever it is, they could be brilliant." She clapped her hands. "I mean, you sing to rocks to make them break apart! How neat is that? The best Jenny can do with _her_ voice is break a glass or a sonic lock."

"Jenny?"

"My sister," Seo explained. "She's..." She stopped. Frowned. "Well, I'm not sure where she is, at the moment. Mutajar said she sent Jenny back to the Main Complex. For all I know, she's still there, snooping around and making mischief."

Yimi said nothing — thinking of her own brother. She never realized how much she'd miss him.

"You'll probably wind up meeting her by the end of all this," Seo said, with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Whenever things go pear-shaped and I don't know what to do — she always comes through for me. Best sister ever! Except when I want to punch her. Which is a lot. Don't tell her I said that."

Yimi still said nothing.

At the moment, she thought she might give anything for the chance to see Iporil again and tell him — she was sorry. For everything. He wasn't worthless, like she'd said.

Seo noticed Yimi's expression, and put a hand on her arm. "Hey."

Yimi looked up. Seo's face was like the gentle sun, peeking out from behind the clouds.

"It's going to be okay," Seo said. "You and me — we're going to make everything okay."


	24. Chapter 24

"After you were teleported back here, Seo showed me the truth about Stenman-Hoyer," Mutajar was explaining to Jenny, as they ran through the corridors of Stenman-Hoyer's main complex. "It's monstrous, Jenny. Everyone here's going to do some hard time over this."

Jenny's mind was spinning. "I don't think you're seeing the full picture. Kardeni showed me this message..."

"Oh, don't even get me started on _her_!" Mutajar interrupted. "You know she's not really Zeera Kardeni, right? That's just a disguise. And given what she did in her former life, it's no wonder she's wrapped up in a criminal scheme like this one."

Mutajar shushed Jenny, as they ducked into a nearby room, waiting while a few employees walked by — and another ran by in the other direction. Jenny was still trying to get this all straight in her mind.

"Be that as it may — Kardeni seemed really scared of something locked away in that other dimension," said Jenny, as Mutajar opened the door and dragged her back into the hall. "And I'm not convinced she's wrong."

"Dangerous _to her_!" Mutajar retorted in a whisper. She slowed her run to a walk, taking more care to look casual as they entered a busier corridor. "The only stuff in those other dimensions are the so-called 'slaves'. They're good people, Jenny. They don't deserve what's happened to them. Kardeni just knows that when they take their revenge, _she'll_ be the first one up against the wall."

Jenny hesitated. Yes, Kardeni had shown Jenny that warning message about the Apos'alu, but... Jenny, herself, hadn't been able to read it. Kardeni had translated everything. What if she had purposely mistranslated it? Maybe it wasn't a warning at all. Maybe Mutajar was right, and Kardeni was making up some false justification for why they needed to keep the dimensions sealed.

"Your friend, Seo, showed me everything," Mutajar whispered, as they passed through the downstairs lobby and made their way towards the steps leading to the basement level. "She opened some kind of dimensional doorway to a... I don't even know what. There's world after world in there, all filled with slavery and horror and death. She and I got separated. I tried to reach her, but... ran into some complications." She flashed a smile at an employee passing them by, then added to Jenny below her breath, "The Doctor's in there, too. I couldn't reach him, either."

Jenny sucked in a sharp breath, trying to think this all through as they descended to the basement.

"I'm not saying your story is wrong," Jenny said, at last, "but is it possible that you've overlooked something? Maybe there's more to this than you know."

"There isn't," said Mutajar. Her eyes were very hard and very determined. "I know exactly what I'm doing, Jenny. _Exactly_." She opened up the door at the bottom of the steps and ushered Jenny down to the basement level. "And there's nothing anyone can say that would stop me."

The basement level hallway was abandoned, save for the ghosts in the distance. They raced down it, their shoes scuffing the tile floor — but stopped just before the ghosts. Mutajar flashed a red ID card against the reader, and the door whirred, then whooshed open.

One of the ghosts turned, as if noticing Jenny. It reached out for her. Jenny, without really thinking, reached back.

Mutajar yanked her into the room before she made contact. "What are you doing?!" She pushed a button on the other side of the door and it slid shut. A buzzing sound echoed through the rooms, and a force field sprang up around the walls. The ghosts didn't come inside.

Mutajar dropped Jenny's hand, and ran.

Jenny turned, intending to follow, but stopped in her tracks.

The machinery Mutajar ran towards was unlike anything Jenny had seen before. It was complex, intricate, a large tower of bits and pieces cobbled together — but she had no idea what they did or how they worked. What was this?

And why did it look so... rough?

"I guess it's lucky for me that I found you in a room with so much useful stuff," Mutajar said, as she began to take components out of her pocket and hook them up to the machine. "Granted, I'm not actually an engineer, but it's amazing the kinds of things you can learn with a little bit of time and a lot of determination."

Jenny felt a shudder run through her, as she realized the truth. "You didn't sabotage their machinery. You built this yourself — specifically to tear apart that dimensional boundary."

Mutajar twisted a set of wires, a small grin on her face. "Clever." She stepped back, examining the device. "But right now, this'll only cut through the top few layers. I plan to cut through all of it. Everywhere. Everything has to come out."

Mutajar stepped towards the machine again — but Jenny darted forwards and stood in her way. She wasn't letting Mutajar touch the machine one more time until she'd thought this through properly.

"Jenny..." Mutajar sighed.

"You're releasing a whole bunch of enslaved creatures into this complex," Jenny said, "while both Stenman and Hoyer are gone. The slaves are going to be angry. They're going to want revenge! And when they realize there's no one to take their revenge on, they'll just start killing everyone here."

Mutajar crossed her arms. "So what?"

Jenny stared. "I'm sorry?"

Mutajar shook her head, giving a little laugh and placing her hands on Jenny's shoulders. "Jenny, Jenny — don't you understand? Everyone here is a criminal. They're all complicit. We _want_ them to die."

Jenny yanked herself out of Mutajar's grip. "How can you say that?" She flung her arms out. "Most of the people here have no idea what's really going on! They're innocent...!"

"No one is innocent," Mutajar interrupted. Her voice lowered, as she met Jenny's eyes. "So many horrible things have happened here, Jenny. So much pain. So much death. A whole planet in this star system was ripped to temporal shreds, its inhabitants tortured and distorted by the ravages of a time battle. And then Stenman-Hoyer Co. came, and Zeera Kardeni returned, and the torture and death and misery started all over again." A fire ignited inside her eyes. "But I'm not letting her get away with it. That psychopath won't escape justice a third time."

Jenny felt her jaw fall open, as she struggled to reconcile the Kardeni she knew with the one Mutajar was describing. It didn't seem to fit. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, haven't you worked it out, yet?" Mutajar shoved her out of the way, and began working on the machine again. "Zeera Kardeni's the one who destroyed Galia-3."

Jenny blinked. "What?!"

"Well, sort of," Mutajar amended. "This all gets confusing with the chameleon arch involved. Let's just say that she is a very evil person who massacred a whole team of Time Lords to hide her crimes, then used a chameleon arch to turn herself human and escape justice."

"A chameleon...?"

"It means that Zeera doesn't remember what the non-human version of her did," said Mutajar, running to the other side of the machine and tweaking it a little. "Well, not unless she opens the watch. But her human-self is still the same person, deep down inside. That's why she came running back here, first chance she got, to start the whole thing up again."

Jenny bit her lower lip. Was any of this true? It would certainly explain why Kardeni knew so much Gallifreyan. But Jenny still had a hard time imagining that the Kardeni she knew was actually a hardened criminal.

Besides, why did that justify destroying everyone in the Main Complex right now?

"But there has to be a better way to do this," Jenny insisted, running over to Mutajar and yanking her away from the machine. "Putting aside the whole issue of whether you can charge Zeera for crimes committed by sort-of-another-person — there has to be some way to free the slaves and apprehend Kardeni that doesn't involve killing all the innocent employees. I can help!"

Mutajar shoved Jenny away from her. "You have no idea what I've been through!" she shouted. "You know how many times I've died? You want to know how it feels, getting fractured and torn apart like that, only to find yourself murdered over and over again?" She put her hands on her chest. "Because I can still feel it all, Jenny. The bullet passing through my skull. The crunch of my bones as I'm buried alive. The burn of the fire across my flesh." Her eyes narrowed. "You want to know whose fault that is?"

Jenny stepped backwards. "How is that...?"

"Possible? You tell me!" Mutajar raised up the non-functioning vortex manipulator, advancing on Jenny angrily. Jenny found herself stumbling back. "But apparently, it is — because that's been my life for centuries, now. Maybe even millennia." She lowered her wrist. "I've been fighting back. Trying to break free. When I met you and your sister in the forest — I met you at the farthest point I could reach before the Battle TARDIS would start clawing me back." She ran her hands through her hair. "It's been torture, Jenny. A never-ending nightmare! And why? Because that genocidal psychopath currently calling herself Zeera Kardeni was scared I'd tell Rassilon the truth."

"But you're... I mean, you're actually a...!" Jenny stumbled over a crate behind her and felt herself falling and crashing against a pile of them. "You're a Time Lord!"

Mutajar just stared at her like she was the stupidest person she'd ever met. Then, finally, she grabbed Jenny by the hand and yanked her to her feet. "I don't have time for this. Where's your TARDIS key?"

Before Jenny had a chance to answer, Mutajar grabbed the chain around Jenny's neck and yanked hard until it broke. The chain holding the TARDIS key came off in her hand.

"Ow!" Jenny protested, hand against her neck. Then, trying to grab the key back, "Hey!"

Mutajar pulled the key out of reach and knocked Jenny sidelong into the pile of crates a second time. "Sorry, but like I said, I've got no time." She turned away and ran back to the machine, inserting Jenny's TARDIS key into the machine beside another — one that Jenny recognized, from the pink bunny keychain, was Seo's. "I don't know how long I'll be able to exist this far outside the vault. At some point, the magic's going to be over, and I'll be swept back inside — trapped again, waiting for death after death after death." She ripped out a set of wires, making sparks fly, then shoved them elsewhere, wrapping the metal filaments into the copper of the other wire. "I can't let that maniac escape."

Jenny picked herself up out of the pile of crates. Noticing a metal bar on the ground nearby, she grabbed it, arming herself as she advanced on Mutajar again. "Does the word 'Apos'alu' mean anything to you?" Took another step forwards. "How about 'Biv'?"

Mutajar paused. "I haven't heard those names for a long..." Then, with a small, nervous laugh, "You probably shouldn't know about any of this. I'm going to have to get out my memory worm before this is all over."

Jenny's eyes narrowed. She ran at Mutajar with the steel pipe, intending to send it crashing through the machine and — hopefully — Mutajar's head.

Mutajar spun around at the last minute and caught it.

"You're making a mistake, Jenny," Mutajar said. "There was a mix-up back at the beginning. It's too long to explain, but — I swear to you, I'm not the bad guy!" She ripped the steel pipe out of Jenny's hands and dropped it to the floor with a thud. "Seo and the Doctor are still stuck in that death-trap — and I'm the only one who knows enough to save them."

Jenny bunched her hands into fists. "You don't care about them. You just want to release the Apos'alu."

"Why would I want to do...?"

"I'm not an idiot," Jenny snapped. She pointed at Mutajar. "You were part of the War Council, sent here to capture the Apos'alu for Rassilon — except instead, you got caught in its trap." She crossed her arms. "Of course, that's not your mission anymore. Because, like Dad, you can tell that there are no Time Lords in the universe." Her eyes narrowed. "So what are you really up to? The truth, this time!"

Mutajar met her eyes and said nothing for a long, long moment. Then, finally, she turned back around to the machine, again. "The truth." She yanked a wire out of the machine, and it sparked in her hands. "Very well. Truth is, a long time ago, someone betrayed the Doctor — and myself. So I've vowed to make sure it never happens again. Not even by those who call themselves his 'friends'."

Mutajar turned around and shoved the live wire at Jenny, who yelped and tried to leap backwards — but too late. A jolt of electricity shot through her, making her nerves flare up with pain.

She collapsed to the ground.

The last thing she saw before she lost consciousness was Mutajar plugging the cable back into the machine, then shoving her wrist and the vortex manipulator through the green glow at its center. The vortex manipulator gave a soft beep, as it began working normally again.

Mutajar's smile grew. "At last," she breathed. She hugged the vortex manipulator to her chest in a burst of sheer relieved joy. "At last!" Then she stopped herself, focused herself. "No. Can't celebrate yet. I have to finish this." She poked at the vortex manipulator, programming in her journey. "Step one — save the Doctor."

She pressed a final button on her vortex manipulator, and vanished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One quick extra little thing here. If you have been introduced to a character under one name, that is the name I will be using for the remainder of the story in the narration. The characters may refer to each other differently in the dialogue, but the narration will keep the same names. I only deviate from this policy once, at the tail end of the story, and for a specific reason. But at this point, the names will remain steady in this story. This should alleviate a fair amount of confusion.
> 
> (So, for example, if it were to turn out that Jenny is actually Zaphod Beeblebrox (which she's not), then you might see something like this in the story: '"But Zaphod Beeblebrox, where did it go?" Seo asked Jenny.')
> 
> Sorry for having to put this in here. I was going to say at the beginning of Chapter 1, but I completely forgot.


	25. Chapter 25

The Doctor and Lantro stared at the destruction around them. Everywhere they looked, they found the aged, decaying bodies of a beautiful, bird-like people. Their houses were overgrown and falling apart. The remains of a futuristic-looking car was rusting and decaying into the ground. There was no sound from any animal still living on this planet. Not a bird. Not an insect. Not a person.

A black scorch mark was still smoldering from where it had seared into the planet's surface. It would extend all the way down through the whole crust, the Doctor knew. Its effects would go even further —deep down into the core, causing the formation of hot spots and a resurgence in volcanic activity. In a matter of days, the ground would begin to rip apart, lava shooting hundreds of miles into the air, in a process that wouldn't stop for a few million years.

"You've seen this before, haven't you?" Lantro guessed. "The last time you were here."

The Doctor stared out at the scarred landscape, scenes of horror flashing through his mind. He'd seen this weapon used before. How many times had it been?

"Not here," the Doctor said. "Just... during the War. I wasn't here when..." He stopped himself. His hands clenched into fists. His eyes were hard. "This ends today."

Lantro sighed. "And it will, I promise," he said. "But we can't shut down anything until we find your friend, remember?"

That was when they heard someone scream.

Lantro and the Doctor turned, surprised — as they looked across the site of the explosion, and saw, at the other end, a beautiful, feathery creature bent double and sobbing, and a petite blond girl with an arm around her, soothing her.

"Speak of the devil," the Doctor said, as he began running towards them. He called out to them, "Seo!"

The blonde girl looked up, cursed beneath her breath, then grabbed the bird-creature up and dragged her alongside, as they fled.

The Doctor faintly heard Seo shout at him, "Go away! You can't stop me!"

The Doctor face-palmed. "Oh, that's just brilliant!" He ran after her. "Seo, I can guess what you're trying to do. And since you're running away from me, I can also guess that even _you_ know this is a really, _really_ bad idea!"

Seo flipped him the middle finger, and kept running.

Lantro sprinted, struggling to catch up with the Doctor. " _That's_ your friend? The blond one?" He reached down towards his pocket. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, unfortunately," the Doctor grumbled. Then, calling out, "Seo, we can talk about this! You don't know what you're doing!"

"I don't want to talk!" Seo shouted back, still running. "You never listen — not even when I'm right!" Then, to her bird-friend beside her, "Keep going, Yimi. If we can get to that rock..."

"You have the power to unlock any dimension — but some things need to stay locked up!" The Doctor shouted after her. "Please! Just listen to me! The Apos'alu is extremely dangerous."

Seo stopped running and spun around, her face furious. "I _know_ it's dangerous! I worked that one out ages ago." She threw her hands up in the air. "Why else do you think I'm trying to...?"

The heat of the laser bolt scorched the Doctor's skin as it shot past him and slammed straight into Seo, striking her squarely in the chest. Seo fell to the ground in a crumpled heap, her body still smoldering. Yimi, standing beside her, screamed.

The Doctor spun around — to find Agent Lantro standing there, a cold expression on his face, his gun still smoking from the shot.

"Oh, no," the Doctor breathed, his worst suspicions confirmed. "And I really thought you were just protecting your friend Zeera."

Agent Lantro swung the gun around so the barrel was aimed squarely at the Doctor's chest and pulled the trigger.

"No!" A brown-haired blur jumped on Lantro's back, throwing off the shot. Lantro elbowed her in the stomach and grabbed her by the shoulders, throwing her over his head and smacking her down on the ground. He fired three shots at her — but she'd already rolled out of the way before they had a chance to hit.

Even Lantro was thrown off his guard at those reflexes. "How did you...?"

The woman grabbed a large branch up off the ground and leapt at him, slamming the branch down on his head repeatedly. Lantro sagged, his eyes rolling up in his head as he slumped to the ground.

The Doctor walked forwards, recognizing the woman. "Faye Mutajar."

Faye Mutajar turned on him, her eyes flashing. The vortex manipulator was secure around her wrist, this time. "You recognize me?"

The Doctor frowned. "I..." He stopped. Stared. Then took a step back. "Lantro told me that he was here to rescue you."

"Oh, did he, now?" Mutajar laughed bitterly. Then, just for good measure, she kicked him in the side. "Lying son of a bitch."

Lantro groaned.

Mutajar geared up to kick him again, but the Doctor raced out and grabbed her by the shoulder. "I know you're angry, but I don't think..."

Mutajar glanced back over her shoulder at him, and he fell silent. The Doctor just stared at her, as he slowly let her shoulder go.

"Didn't you get my messages, Doctor?" Mutajar asked. "Don't you know who I am?"

The Doctor stepped back again, not saying a word. Something was tickling at the edge of his mind... something he recognized...

"Biv?" Mutajar prompted. "Bivazeer? Come on. I know I've regenerated, but..."

"It can't be," the Doctor said. "Bivazeer died." He pointed at her. "I _saw_..."

Mutajar sighed, turning away from him. "I don't have time for this!" She grabbed a thick vine off a nearby tree, and yanked at it — hard — until it snapped at the base. Then she began securing Lantro's hands and legs. "I've got to figure out where it went, and he's the only one who knows."

"It...?"

"The Apos'alu!" Mutajar insisted. "Try to keep up, Doctor. Why do you think I got stuck here in its prison? It escaped!"

The Doctor stepped back again, slowly, his eyes fixed on Mutajar for a few long, long seconds. Then he turned around and ran over to Seo's body, which was still smoking where it lay. The bird person — Yimi — was bent over her, trying to apply pressure to the wound... which, since it wasn't a normal bullet wound, didn't help much.

"You can get through it," Yimi was saying. "I know you can. We've got gods to find and dig up. Remember? We're going to... to find..."

But Seo had stopped breathing. She had stopped moving. She was gone. Really gone.

The Doctor came over, leaning down beside Seo. He scanned his sonic screwdriver across her, checked the readings, then shook his head and tucked it away.

"She's... she's..." Yimi's voice was trembling — as were her hands. She looked up at the Doctor. "I shouldn't have liked her. I know I shouldn't. She stood against everything I believed in. But..." she looked down at Seo, tears brimming in her eyes. "She took a bullet for me. And I was too big a coward to take one for her."

The Doctor put an arm around Yimi and helped her to her feet. He glanced back at Seo... a long, sad stare... then looked away, helping Yimi to make her way back to where Mutajar was still tying up Agent Lantro.

"That was pretty cold of you," Mutajar said, knotting the vine to make sure he couldn't escape. "Your friend gets killed and you just... walk away. Like it means nothing." She stepped away from Lantro. "I hope you didn't do that when you left me."

"I..." The Doctor paused. Wiped his floppy fringe out of his eyes. "You're really Bivazeer?"

Mutajar crossed her arms. "Seriously? You don't believe me?" She shot him a hard glare. "Can't you _tell_?"

"But... but you died!" the Doctor insisted. "I watched you die. No regeneration."

Mutajar shrugged. "That's what I thought, too. Then I woke up." She looked down at herself. "What do you think? The hips are a little narrow. But it's not a bad body, all in all."

The Doctor didn't have time to answer, as Agent Lantro opened his eyes. The Doctor held up a finger to Mutajar. "We'll talk about this later." Then he turned his attention back to Agent Lantro, who was blinking his eyes open, squinting in the bright light of the sun. The Doctor's face was the first one he saw. "Hello again, Agent Lantro. I believe you were about to tell me why you just murdered my companion."


	26. Chapter 26

"Jenny?" Someone gently slapped her cheek. "Jenny, wake up." Another slap. "Jenny, can you hear me?"

Jenny groaned, opening her eyes. Branden's face swam into focus.

Jenny jolted upright, nearly knocking him over. "I thought you were upstairs, checking over...!"

Branden clapped a hand over her mouth, shushing her. Outside came a series of screams, followed by a burst of gunfire and an angry thud-thud-thud of large feet. Branden ventured a glimpse over the top of the crates surrounding them, then shoved both Jenny and himself down to the ground — as a series of bullets flew through the air above them.

"The door's jammed open," Branden whispered into her ear. "I was going to leave the moment I realized I couldn't close it — but then I found you. I didn't want to leave you behind."

Jenny peeked over the crate, seeing a dead human and a dead bird-like creature in the hallway, their bodies overgrown with a thick orange moss. A badger-beaver sprinted past the door, hissing and extending its claws.

Mutajar's machine was now powerless. It had done its work.

Jenny leapt to her feet and ran to it, checking it over. Not too much damage from stray bullets. And Mutajar had been right — only the top layers had been released. Maybe if Jenny could find some way to reverse all this...

Branden leapt out and grabbed Jenny, yanking her back behind the crates as a bear-shark lumbered inside, shot a volley of bullets into the room to make sure no one was hiding there, then grunted and lumbered off.

"Force field," Jenny whispered to Branden, checking to make sure the coast was clear. She gestured for him to wait, as she leapt across the room, throwing herself at the panel beside the door and stabbing at buttons. A badger-beaver spotted her and charged, claws extended.

Jenny slammed her hand down on a final button.

The force field shot up around the outside of the room — and the badger-beaver was thrown back against the far wall of the corridor.

"That'll protect the machinery until I get back to reverse everything," Jenny said, breathing a sigh of relief. Turned to Branden. "You stay here." Turned to the door. "I gotta go get Kardeni."

Branden leapt out and grabbed her by the arm, tugging her away from the door. "Leave her!"

Jenny spun around. "How can you...?"

"She's been lying to us, Jenny!" Branden said. "She's a monster. She deserves what she gets."

Jenny sighed and tugged her hand away. "Just because she blew up Galia-3 in a previous life doesn't mean we should..." She trailed off, as she noticed the confused look on Branden's face. "Right... you weren't actually talking about that, were you?"

Branden shook his head. "I did what you said. Went to Kardeni's office. Turns out, an undercover Time Agent was already turning over the office herself, looking for something."

"Mutajar," Jenny muttered.

Branden nodded. "Mutajar told me all the really good stuff was in Lantro's office, down in the basement. So I went there and..." He flicked his wrist, and an archived email message popped up.

_Attached is a draft of the claims paperwork we were discussing earlier. As per our conversation, I have filled out Galia-3's forms as if it were a real planet. I've also ordered a gravity scan of the system (also attached) which we can use as proof that we didn't know anything Time Lord was here. Please check and make sure I've covered our tracks on everything._

_In terms of the real work, I believe I've made a breakthrough with the Battle TARDIS. I'll drop by Mr. Stenman's at 4 to discuss. Very exciting!_

_Zeera._

Jenny stared at it.

"That's the least of it," said Branden. His hands were shaking. "Mutajar went through everything in Lantro's office. Unlocked every secret hiding spot. There's incriminating documents _everywhere,_ and they're _all_ about Kardeni."

"She knew about all this from the beginning," Jenny said.

" _Before_ the beginning." Branden flicked his wrist and pulled up an academic paper — never published — written by Zeera.

Jenny's eyes widened as she skimmed it. The paper hypothesized a Time War battle had been fought in an unnamed star system — now the Galia system. Kardeni predicted that a proper archaeological excavation could uncover a treasure trove of Time Lord weapons and artifacts.

"When did she write this?" Jenny asked.

"During her short time in graduate school," said Branden. He flicked his wrist, and the paper was replaced by a different one. "Here's the first — unfinished — draft of her graduate thesis. Or this was as much as she wrote before she dropped out. Guess what she studied?"

The title hung in the air:

_'The Linguistics of Censorship in the First and Second Rassilon Eras: the Gallifreyan Rosetta Stone'._

Jenny reached out and touched the edge of the pages to flip through it. Seeing this, Jenny was starting to wonder if Mutajar's assumption about Kardeni being a Time Lord was perhaps a little premature.

"It's incredibly clever," Jenny said, skimming through it. "She's pointing out that the first time Rassilon was in charge, everyone still spoke Old High Gallifreyan. The second time, everyone spoke modern Gallifreyan, and the Time Lords also had an off world colony with completely different languages — but the same censorship laws. She looks at what kinds of phrases people use to get around the censors in the languages she knows, then uses that to check the Oxford Gallifreyan dictionary definitions, and, subsequently, translate the Old High Gallifreyan." She turned back to the front of the thesis. "'Dedicated to the memory of my parents — Lanterners who used to tell me Time Lord stories every night as I fell asleep.'" Jenny looked up at Branden, confused. "What's a Lanterner?"

"Academics who try to find those weird telepathic lantern things the Time Lords sent out," said Branden. "We've got a huge repository of them stored back on Earth."

Jenny nodded, slowly.

"And there's more." Branden spread open his hands, and the whole room filled with holographic data and documents. As Jenny looked through them all, her stomach tightened. The more she looked, the less convinced she was that Zeera Kardeni was a Time Lord, and the more certain she was that, regardless of that fact...

Zeera Kardeni was definitely a criminal.

"This makes it seem like this whole thing was her idea in the first place," said Jenny. She turned back to Branden. "But that makes no sense. If she came up with the idea, why's she just a secretary and not running the company?" Jenny looked back through the documents and picked out a contract that showed what Kardeni's 'cut' was supposed to be. "I mean, she's got money problems! Even Lantro said she didn't get..."

Jenny trailed off.

It suddenly hit her. _Lantro_ said she didn't get paid enough. And _Lantro_ was the one hiding all this stuff in his office. So when he said she didn't get paid enough — he knew!

"Come on." Jenny grabbed Branden by the arm and dragged him towards the panel, setting the force-field to be remotely released by her biodata, so she could open it up again from the other side. "They're setting her up as the fall guy. And that means we finally have leverage to get her to tell us the truth."

Branden struggled, trying to pull Jenny back. "Are you insane? You don't know what it's like out there!" He waved his hand and a phone icon appeared in the air. "Why don't we just call her?"

Jenny waved her hand through the icon and it disappeared.

"Because Mutajar thinks Kardeni is a Time Lord," said Jenny, as the force-field went down. "And I'm not convinced that she's right."

* * *

The outer door to 78B was dangling off its hinges, and the inner door was still open — just the way Jenny and Mutajar had left it when they'd exited. Jenny shuddered. Had Mutajar done that on purpose?

Jenny's hearts sunk even more as she walked forwards and could see the mess that had been room 78B. None of the machinery was operational anymore. Everything had been smashed apart. Bits of it had been taken, other bits had been set on fire. The room was a complete mess.

"She's already dead, isn't she?" Jenny breathed.

An arrow barely missed them, and Branden shot past Jenny, dragging her after him. "Dead or not, this is the most defensible space I can see, at the moment."

They ran inside, then punched a button and slammed the inner door shut behind them. They could hear the thud of things striking the inner door from outside — but none of the attacks made so much as a dent. Jenny took a moment to catch her breath.

It was cut short by a burst of gunfire from inside the room.

Jenny and Branden both dove to the floor, scrambling to find cover. It was only then that Jenny realized the gun made a strange sound — one she'd heard back when Stenman had used that staser.

"Mrs. Kardeni?" Jenny called out. "Zeera? It's okay. It's just us!"

The gunfire stopped. Then, a little warily, "Which 'us'?"

Jenny stood up, revealing herself, her hands in the air. "Me and Branden."

A sigh of relief, as a disheveled and somewhat panicked Zeera Kardeni emerged from her hiding place. "I thought... for a minute, I thought that other one had..." She dropped the staser to the ground. Her hands were shaking. "Oh, God. What a nightmare!"

Branden emerged from his own hiding place. His eyes were a lot less forgiving. "A nightmare _you_ created. Isn't that right, Zeera?"

Kardeni blinked. Looked at Jenny.

"We found your graduate thesis," Jenny explained, slowly edging towards Kardeni. "And that paper you wrote, theorizing that there were Time Lord weapons buried here. And a whole bunch of really incriminating documents that basically say you've been in on the criminal part of this since long before day one."

Kardeni froze.

Then, she lunged for the gun.

But Jenny was faster. She jumped Kardeni before she could start firing, and wrestled the staser from her hands. She put the safety back on, then tossed the gun to Branden. She let go of Kardeni, who slumped against the wall, her head down.

"I take it that means we're right?" Jenny asked.

"I'm not saying anything," Kardeni insisted, glancing around herself, nervously. "I can plead the fifth. I have rights!"

Boom!

The room shook, as a sound like an explosion erupted from just behind the door. Somehow, the door still remained whole and locked.

"Zeera," Jenny said in a very calm but cold voice, "Stenman and Hoyer are both gone. Everyone in this building is getting slaughtered. And the documents that were left behind blame _you_ for everything." She stepped forwards. "It's only a matter of time before the authorities show up."

"They're blaming _me_ for...?" Kardeni buried her face in her hands. "I don't know what to do."

"Start telling the truth," said Branden, sternly, "and don't stop until the end."

Jenny held up her hand to stop Branden. She ran over to Kardeni, and in a gentler voice, "Zeera — you know where the access point is, to get us to the full control room. If Dad gets there, he can..."

"He can't," Kardeni cut in.

"You don't know how resourceful he is," Jenny insisted. "We'll find a way to get a message to him. I can..."

"No, I mean really, he can't," Kardeni said. "He's in the vault. You can't reach the main control room from inside the vault. It's impossible." She gave a small shrug. "And with Protocol Z in place, we can't get there, either. I'm sorry."

"Why? Where is it?" Branden demanded.

Kardeni hesitated. Then, very quietly, "On Galia-3."

For a moment, no one spoke.

"What?!" Jenny cried.

"Galia-3 doesn't exist," Branden reminded her. He stepped forwards. "I've seen the empty space where it should be. There's nothing there!"

Kardeni fidgeted with her hands. "There isn't a planet there. That's true. But there is _something_ there; it's just... hidden." She swallowed hard. "We linked Galia-3 to this planet through a particular metamorphic rock — installed at a number of points in the planet's history, to stop erosion from washing away our control. But that rock only leads _into_ the vault."

"Into the..." Jenny stared, as she realized the truth. "Galia-3 isn't a planet. It's the Battle TARDIS."

Kardeni nodded. "To get to the main control center reliably, you have to travel back 50 million years and get sucked into the center of Galia-3's gravitational pull." She shrugged. "That's how he found the TARDIS in the first place."

"He?" Jenny asked, stepping forwards. "So it wasn't you? Then who found it? Stenman? Hoyer?"

"Andrew Lantro," Kardeni corrected, looking up into Jenny's eyes. "Why do you think one of Andrew's closest friends wound up working here in the first place? This was all his idea. _He_ brought me in."


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hoping everyone will be able to figure out how Mutajar got her vortex manipulator in this chapter. I couldn't figure out a way to explicitly stick it in so I just implied it, but I'm hoping it's fairly easy to figure out.

Lantro looked the Doctor right in the eye, and gave a dull, heartless shrug.

"He doesn't care," said Mutajar. She began to fume. "He just killed someone, and he doesn't even care!"

The Doctor held out a hand and stopped Mutajar from running forwards and kicking him again. "Let me repeat that. Why did you kill my companion?"

"What's it to you?" Lantro snapped. "You're still alive."

The Doctor put his hand to his head and closed his eyes, giving a long, weary sigh. "Agent Lantro, I have just had a long and very difficult day. I've had to confront memories I never wanted to remember, see the bones of my friends and family crushed into a kind of limestone, and see the deadly results of weapons I thought were gone as they're unearthed and used again on an unsuspecting population. I'm not in the best of moods." He snapped open his eyes, glaring at Lantro. "So let's try this again. Why did you kill Seo?"

Lantro looked at him, completely unimpressed. "To stabilize the systems, of course." He shrugged. "I heard what you said about 'special keys'. I'm not a fool, Doctor — no matter what you kept saying."

"No," the Doctor sighed. "No, I see that, now. You're a part of it. A very clever and very dangerous man." He stepped closer to Mutajar. "You wanted information from me on Time War weapons." He glanced at Seo, then looked away. "And, of course, you needed me to lead you to Seo."

"Like I said earlier, we've gotten Time War survivors coming through here before," said Lantro. "Never a Time Lord, but plenty of others. If it weren't for your 'Key' friend, I'd have fed you to the Ouribiu like all the rest of them."

The Doctor gritted his teeth, remembering the bones that littered the sand dunes on that world eaten by moss. What better way to dispose of a body? Let the moss eat it up and then toss its bones into the sand!

"Oh, you didn't get that part before? You thought there were just lots and lots of people on that world?" Lantro gave a smirk. "Who's the willfully blind idiot now, Doctor?"

"Yes, yes, point taken!" the Doctor snapped. His whole body was tense with rage, as he struggled to hold himself back. "Just tell me one thing: why?"

Lantro seemed surprised. "Why what?"

"Just... why?" the Doctor shouted. "Why, why, why, why, why?!" He stepped back, throwing open his arms, gesturing at the world around him. "Why help Stenman-Hoyer cover up this atrocity? Why kill anyone who stumbles across the truth? Why wipe out world after world after world, without once reporting it to your superiors?"

Lantro gave him a long, hard stare. Then, very quietly, "I didn't 'help them' cover it up. We covered it up together. Equal founding partners."

"Don't give me...!" the Doctor began.

"I was the one who found the Battle TARDIS, Doctor," said Lantro. "I brought in the others. You could say — this whole thing is my gig."

* * *

"Andrew and I have known each other since undergrad," Kardeni explained. "He knew all my crazy ideas about secret Time War battlegrounds. He'd heard them for years. So when the Agency sent him to this system to find the remains of the Royal Archipelago cruise liner... he was able to put the pieces together and find it."

"Royal Archipelago?" Jenny asked.

Branden shrugged. "A big cruise ship that disappeared in this system — a decade or two ago. I heard there'd been a rescue team dispatched and that they found no one left alive. I didn't know the Agency was involved." He turned to Kardeni. "What's the Agency doing sending in recovery crews?"

"There was an illegal temporal arms sale scheduled to take place during that cruise," Kardeni said. "The Agency sent Agent Mry to investigate. He arrested everyone involved and retrieved vital intelligence from them. Then the ship — and Agent Mry — disappeared."

"So they sent in Lantro to find the ship, Agent Mry, and the intelligence!" Jenny grinned. "But Lantro had read your paper, hadn't he? So he had some extra clues about where to look."

"He came to visit me just before the mission," said Kardeni. "I told him everything I knew. When he came back the next day, he was very excited. He said he'd found a Battle TARDIS — and he'd made a new friend. Then he offered me the business opportunity of a lifetime."

"Made a new friend?" Branden shook his head. "I thought there were no survivors."

Kardeni didn't say anything. She looked around herself, nervously, and fidgeted with her sleeve.

"Someone here has a false identity, don't they?" Jenny guessed. "Either Stenman or Hoyer. One of them was onboard that cruise ship — a participant in the illegal arms sale — and offered Lantro a chance to team up and make a huge amount of money, in exchange for lying to the authorities and claiming there were no survivors." She crossed her arms. "Which one is it? Stenman, or Hoyer?"

Kardeni said nothing.

"It's Hoyer," said Branden. "Has to be. Everyone in the Plate Cracking community knows Stenman. He's been in the business forever. But no one knows Hoyer."

"Mr. Stenman knew him," Kardeni said, quietly. "I never found out how they met. But Mr. Hoyer roped in Mr. Stenman."

"And Lantro roped in you," said Jenny. She crossed her arms. "So why did you say yes? You're not a chief executive. You're not making anywhere near as much money as all the others."

"What else could I say?" Kardeni glanced around, nervously. "Several years before that, I'd had to drop out of grad school when Craig was diagnosed with Prolostilox disease. I thought it was my chance to get back to doing what I loved — researching the Time Lords!"

Jenny thought back to the half-finished thesis.

"Prolostilox?" Branden winced. "I... didn't know. I'm sorry."

"What is it?" Jenny asked.

"A disease for which there is no cure," said Kardeni. "When it flares up, Craig's immune system shuts down. He's weak and exhausted all day, every day. He can't work. He can't take care of the kids. And every time he so much as sneezes, we have to take him into the hospital immediately, so the doctors can diagnose his cold or virus and administer the appropriate nanobots to fight it off manually."

Jenny cringed. "Oh. I'm sorry, too."

"The first time it happened, Craig almost died," said Kardeni. "I had a baby, student loans, a mortgage, lousy health insurance, and no savings. I dropped out of grad school and took any job that gave me free daycare and good health insurance. Horrible, awful, boring jobs! Even then, it wasn't enough. I took out a payday loan. Then, I had to take out another. Then another. Then another. Before I knew it, I was drowning in debt and couldn't see any way out of it."

Jenny was finally starting to understand. "That's why you don't get a big salary. You got your cut of the money upfront — to pay off the loans."

Kardeni didn't answer. She glanced around again, then snapped her eyes back to Jenny. She fidgeted, uneasily.

"What do you keep looking...?" Jenny started, glancing around herself.

"The Agency considered Andrew a genius, after he found the cruise ship and the data containing Agent Mry's vital pieces of intelligence," Kardeni cut in, quickly. "They were happy to give him any assignment he wanted, after that. He told the Agency he was suspicious of Mr. Stenman and Mr. Hoyer, and asked to be assigned here to 'keep them in line'. The Agency had no problem with it. Andrew made sure he was the only agent on the job."

* * *

"The thing is, Doctor, the only thing I care about is money," said Lantro. "Well, that and sex. You seen Zeera?" He gave a suggestive whistle. "Thing is, back in college, Zeera had all kinds of crackpot theories about Time Lords and secret Time War battlegrounds. No one ever published any of her papers on it. Academics laughed at her. Everyone knows she's just a delusional nutcase. Her husband's been trying to avoid shoving her in a mental institution for years." He made a half-hearted attempt to struggle out of his bonds. "I changed the coordinates in her paper so it matched the Galia system. She was a convenient fall-guy." He nodded towards the Doctor. "Of course, I knew a Time Lord would be able to see through my plans. That's why I had to get rid of you."

Fury and deep loathing spread across Mutajar's face. "Zeera Kardeni... that psychopathic maniac...!"

"Mutajar knows," said Lantro, nodding over at Mutajar. Then, to Mutajar, "You went through the papers in my office, right? Probably ransacked the place. So you can tell him — I've been setting Zeera up right from the very start."

Mutajar lunged forwards to beat Lantro to a bloody pulp. "What did you do with the watch?!"

The Doctor jumped in between the two, pushing them apart. "No, no, no! No fighting!" He turned to Mutajar. "You're a bit violent in your new body, Biv."

"You try being even-tempered after getting stuck here for a few centuries," Mutajar snapped.

The Doctor sucked in a sharp breath. "That's probably my fault." He ran a hand through his hair. "Zeera has a fob watch. So who is she?"

"Can't you guess?" Mutajar crossed her arms. "After that Dalek shot me, I woke up and realized that when we'd inverted the internal dimensions of this TARDIS to turn it into a prison — we'd accidentally folded the room containing the chameleon arch into that prison. Our prison requires the prisoner to have some connection to time — without that, they'd wriggle free. And humans don't have a time sense." She sighed. "So I had no choice. I went in there to find the chameleon arch before _it_ did. Turns out, I was too late. The prison turned on me instead. I wound up stuck in here as the prisoner, while _it_ escaped."

The Doctor stared. "That... isn't possible. How could the chameleon arch successfully work on a non-Gallifreyan...?"

"Well, obviously, it _was_ possible, because it happened!" Mutajar insisted. "I was there, Doctor. I'm positive. The Apos'alu is inside Zeera Kardeni's fob watch. And if we don't find a way to destroy it before she opens it, the universe is doomed."


	28. Chapter 28

"And the Agency never suspected a thing?" Branden asked.

Kardeni shrugged. "If they did, I never heard about it." She tucked some hair behind her ears. "Besides, we took precautions. Mr. Stenman and Mr. Hoyer never used Andrew's name directly — they used mine. Memos for him were memos to me. When they needed to specifically refer to Andrew, and not myself, they put an apostrophe right before my name." She began trembling. "It never occurred to me how much of a liability that was."

Branden flicked his wrist, and one of the memos he found in Lantro's office popped up above his palm. He raised his eyebrows. Glanced at Jenny. "She's right. There's an apostrophe in front of her name at the top, but not at the bottom."

"And Lantro stored it all inside his office," said Jenny. She gestured at the message floating above Branden's palm. "You know, I'm really starting to wonder what Lantro's deal is. Because you're not the fall guy for Stenman and Hoyer — you're the fall-guy for _Lantro_. And given what I've heard about your relationship, either that makes no sense, or he's a _really_ horrible person."

Kardeni's eyes narrowed. "Andrew would never do anything to hurt...!"

"Oh, because he made you a little toy train?" Branden said, almost mockingly. "Because he ran your errands for you? Or maybe he wasn't running your errands for you. Maybe that was an excuse for him to run off and do the real work inside the Battle TARDIS." Shook his head. "He's not a lovesick puppy, Zeera. He'd turn on you in a heartbeat!"

"But...!"

"If he _really_ wanted to help you," Branden said, gesturing with his hand so the holographic evidence blew into Kardeni's face, "he'd have destroyed all this stuff. Instead, he gathered it together and hid it in his office. So who was he _expecting_ to see it?"

Kardeni swatted at the holographic evidence around her, frantically trying to get it away like it could taint her if it touched her. Jenny, annoyed, shot Branden a look — and with a guilty flick of his wrist, the holograms vanished.

Kardeni shuddered. For a little while, she said nothing.

Then, fidgeting with her crucifix necklace, "It was the religion thing that did it."

Jenny frowned. "Sorry?"

"I knew everything we were doing was illegal, of course," Kardeni said. "I told them, when this company got started, that I'd accept illegal, but I wouldn't do anything _immoral_." She sighed. "Thing was, it had been so hard for us for so long. Finally I was happy, my family was happy, and, for the first time, I could see a future where everything turned out okay. I didn't _want_ to find anything immoral. So when Andrew and I turned the Battle TARDIS into a temporal vault and the company started enslaving, culling, and manipulating sentient creatures — I found a way to justify it to myself. There was always a rationalization I could make — a line in the sand I could draw. And when we crossed that line — there was always another line I could draw, a few steps away from it."

Jenny and Branden exchanged a look.

"But then the Patasi evolved," said Kardeni. "And the only way to control them was to implant a false religion into their culture." She shuddered. "And I couldn't look past it. I couldn't think about anything else. It was gnawing at me, all the time."

Jenny frowned.

So did Branden. "But even before that, you were already enslaving and even killing...!"

"Yes, but religion is sacred," said Kardeni. "God is sacred. Belief in God is what makes us strive to be better than we are. It's what brings us together as a community, and allows us to care for a stranger as if they were a brother." She shook her head. "The thought of making up some false religion as a way to enslave and brainwash people... it was abhorrent. Obscene! And then, one Sunday, when I was in church, I suddenly realized... I'm going to Hell."

No one said anything.

"And as soon as I thought it," Kardeni continued, "it was just always there. Every time I did anything." She clasped her head in her hands. "I'm going to Hell. Nothing can make up for this. What I've done is so bad... so horrible..." She sucked in a sharp breath. "And that's when the justifications and rationalizations all started to crumble into dust. I started to realize I was in as much moral debt now as I had been in financial debt before. I started to talk it over with Andrew. He always found a way to calm me down and convince me to stay loyal. If I'd still been having those daily discussions with him now, I might never have told either of you anything. If he hadn't..."

She trailed off.

Branden sucked in a sharp breath. "That time you got poisoned — it was Lantro, wasn't it? He did it."

Kardeni didn't answer. She just glanced around herself again.

"He thought you were going to spill the beans," Branden reasoned, "so he poisoned you to make sure you wouldn't talk."

Still, no answer.

"That's why Stenman and Hoyer won't let you near him — they're worried he'll kill you for real, next time!" said Branden. "And you won't go near him yourself because you're terrified of him."

Kardeni just shrugged.

"Or maybe..." Jenny suddenly ran over to the door and spun back around, squinting at the spot that Kardeni had been nervously glancing at since they got here. "Maybe that's not what happened at all. But Stenman and Hoyer came to the same conclusion you did, Branden — and Lantro never negated it."

"No, Branden's right," Kardeni insisted. "That was what happened. Andrew..."

Jenny sprinted over to the little light that Kardeni had been nervously glancing towards. "I wondered why you had been hiding in this corner and hadn't bothered to close the door. You can't see it from the door." She revealed the light to Branden.

The light was labeled 'Vault Retrieval Request.'

"Thing is, Zeera — if you had suddenly realized Lantro was a psychopath who wanted to poison you," said Jenny, "you wouldn't be risking life and limb to retrieve him from the vault the _very second_ you get his signal."

Jenny stepped in front of the light, blocking Kardeni's view — and Kardeni leapt to the side to keep it in sight.

Jenny smiled, her point made.

"I think your ending up in the hospital was an accident," Jenny hypothesized. "You told Lantro something that made him so panicked, he reached for whatever was on-hand — a drug designed for the creatures you evolved on Galia-4, not for humans. But the underlying intent of the drug still worked, and it made you furious at him, and _that's_ why you haven't talked to him for the past two months."

The light began flashing. Kardeni lunged for the controls beside it — but Jenny caught her by the wrist before she could push them.

"The office rumors are true, aren't they?" Jenny said, quietly. "You told him you were pregnant, and were planning to keep the child. So he put something into your coffee, to make the problem 'go away'."


	29. Chapter 29

Yimi jumped at the name. "Abozalu?"

Lantro looked askance at them. "What do you three know about the Apos'alu?"

The Doctor turned to Lantro and Yimi. "What do _I_ know? What do you two know?"

"Abozalu is a god," Yimi said, "who fell to this planet long ago, and became trapped inside. Seo and I were going to find him. She thought he was someone called 'the Master'."

"The Master?" The Doctor sighed, face in his hands. "Oh, Seo, Seo! No wonder she ran. All this — because of a mistake!"

"The Apos'alu is not a Time Lord," said Mutajar. "It was born on Galia-3. Rassilon wanted it."

"Rassilon?" Yimi ruffled her feathers. "Who is...?"

"Another false god," the Doctor cut in, quickly. He turned to Lantro. "And you? What do you know? _How_ do you know, for that matter?"

Lantro didn't say anything.

"Isn't it obvious?" Mutajar fumed. "He knows because he has Kardeni's watch! He has to! It wasn't in his office! In Stenman or Hoyer's offices! In her office! Or even on her person." She grabbed him by the collar and shook him. "Where is it? Give it to me!"

The Doctor caught a glint of something behind Lantro's back. "Wait!" He ran behind Lantro, grabbing him by the vortex manipulator. "He fixed it. Well, partially. Not enough to get him out of the vault, but enough to send some kind of signal to the Main Complex. A retrieval signal, no doubt." He buzzed the vortex manipulator with his sonic screwdriver, and it fell into a million pieces. "There. That's better."

For the first time, Lantro really did start struggling against his bonds. "Look, Doctor, she's crazy! I don't know what she's talking about!"

"Oh, I think you do," said the Doctor, stepping beside Mutajar. "Every time I got suspicious, you dropped Zeera's name. First with the Time War. Then with the Ouribiu. When I didn't take the bait, you dropped that carefully tailored fob watch description right into my lap. The perfect Time Lord distraction." He put his hand on Mutajar's shoulder, and she dropped him reluctantly. "So how about you tell us the truth?"

Lantro said nothing.

"No one's coming to save you," the Doctor warned. "And Biv's going to keep asking you until you give her an answer." He flashed a grin at Mutajar. "So!" Turned back to Lantro. "Where did you hide Zeera Kardeni's fob watch?"

For a long while, Lantro remained silent.

Then, finally, he sighed.

"She doesn't have one," Lantro muttered, looking away. "R&D is backlogged with weapons we can't figure out. Stenman and Hoyer wanted me to find a way to get Time War survivors here. I made it up as a lure to reel you in."

"You made it up," the Doctor deadpanned.

"Hey, I don't like this any more than you do," Lantro insisted. "But — think about it a second, Doctor. When I was trying to get information out of you, I didn't care about a watch. I wanted to know what 'minefield' you were talking about. What that blue poison did. What a Magenta Dragon was. Details about that weapon that grounded TARDISes."

The Doctor frowned. That _was_ true.

"I only brought up the watch when you started losing interest," said Lantro, "to keep you hooked." He sighed. "Zeera Beverley Stenner. You can look up her birth records. She's full-blood human. Always has been."

"But you knew about the watch!" Mutajar insisted. "You described it exactly!"

"Back when we were in college, Zeera was obsessed with studying about Time Lords," said Lantro. "She used to drone on and on and on about it. You couldn't shut her up. Used to drag Craig and me to guest lectures and stuff, too. I heard about the chameleon arch by chance. Got suspicious. Started looking into it."

"And stole her fob watch," Mutajar accused.

"And found _nothing_ ," Lantro corrected. "Zeera's parents were professors specializing in Gallifreyan Lanterns. Zeera loved their research. Taught herself the language. I looked into her background. Everything made sense. No holes. No problems." He stared pointedly at the Doctor and Mutajar. "She is human."

"Liar!" Mutajar shouted.

"Oh, _I'm_ the liar now?" Lantro turned to the Doctor. "You know, Doctor, I think there was a kernel of truth in Mutajar's story. See — I _found_ the chameleon arch room inside this TARDIS. The chameleon arch was kind of a wreck. More so now. But back then, it still worked just enough that I could see the previous error logs. There _was_ an attempted transfer of a non-Gallifreyan entity. Mutajar was right."

Mutajar gave a proud smile.

"But you see, it got stopped mid-way through," said Lantro. "And that got me thinking — Faye Mutajar. Daughter of Phil Mutajar — a famous Anti-Plate Cracker back before I was born. Faye was just five when the whole family disappeared. No one knew where." He glanced over at the Doctor. "I could hazard a guess. How about you?"

The Doctor grabbed Yimi by the arm and spun on his heels. "Run!" he shouted at her.

Mutajar threw up her hand. "Oh no, you don't!"

The landscape shifted around the Doctor and Yimi, grass turning to stone, walls folding out from nowhere, the sky suddenly shielded by a dripping cement ceiling. The Doctor yelped as he smacked into the far wall of a small dungeon — with bars across the windows.

"Oh." The Doctor looked around. Grimaced. "I didn't think she'd be able to do that."

"I've learned a lot from watching the humans dissect and reprogram and distort my prison," said Mutajar as she appeared at the other end, carrying a still-tied-up Lantro. She spat at him, then threw him against the far wall of the prison, where he smacked with a loud 'oomph.'

Neither the Doctor nor Yimi untied him.

"You're not as sharp as you used to be, Doctor," Mutajar observed, aiming Lantro's gun at him. "I'm disappointed."

"Have to admit, your fake Time Lord telepathic signal _really_ threw me off." The Doctor pulled Yimi behind him, protectively, then raised up his hands in surrender. "Still, I can't help but notice that despite that shiny new human body you've possessed and taken over, you're still stuck here."

"Your prison," Mutajar gritted through her teeth, "still doesn't believe I'm human."

Yimi peaked out from behind the Doctor's back. "Who...?"

The Doctor shoved her back behind him. "Nobody! Don't worry about it!"

"Oh, let the savage see her god," said Lantro, finally managing to snag the vine on a sharp rock poking out of the wall. "Throw the dog a bone, Doctor." He broke free from his bonds and stretched out, arching his back.

"Abozalu?" Yimi stepped away from the Doctor, her jaw falling open, staring. "But you're...!"

The Doctor firmly shoved her back behind him. To Mutajar, "Why are we still alive?"

"Why have you been _keeping_ us alive?" Lantro corrected, crossing his arms. "I've lived through falls today that should have broken my neck twenty times over."

Mutajar stepped forwards, keeping her gun trained on them. "Bivazeer."

* * *

"It wasn't an affair!" Kardeni insisted, snatching her hand away. "It was once!" She paused. "Well, twice." She paused again. "Well, maybe more than twice — but it wasn't an affair!"

"Thing is, Stenman and Hoyer were already suspicious of Lantro," Jenny said, still standing in front of the light. It blinked off. "So when you wound up in the hospital, they assumed he'd done it to stop you from telling them what he was _really_..."

Kardeni shoved Jenny out of the way and jabbed at the vault retrieval controls.

Nothing happened.

"It couldn't have lost the signal," Kardeni said, frantically trying again. And again. And again! "How could it have...?"

Jenny got up from where she'd fallen on the ground. She could guess who'd discovered and disabled the signal. "At a guess, Dad's figured out Lantro's on the wrong side — and wants to keep him there."

Kardeni spun back around, suddenly furious. "The vault was originally designed as a prison for the Apos'alu!" she shouted. "We managed to unlock the top few layers — but they've all gone deep, deep inside it. Without that signal, there's no way to get _any_ of them out. They'll be trapped there forever!"

"You know, at the moment, I'm kind of okay with that," Branden said, coming over. "In fact, if there was a way to push you inside, too — I'd trap you in there with them."

Jenny held out a hand for Branden to stop.

She looked into Zeera's eyes.

"That's why you first started telling me all of this, isn't it?" Jenny said. "Because of the Apos'alu. You're afraid of it."

Zeera cringed. Then pushed past Jenny and began to work at the controls again — trying desperately to piece them together to get some part of them functional. "I have to find another way."

Jenny walked over, leaning against the console. "What is the Apos'alu really, Zeera? What did that message _actually_ say?"

Kardeni paused.

Hesitated.


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This scene is just wonderful. I love this scene.
> 
> I actually got a review that made me laugh today. The person pointed out that this story is "a mystery wrapped up in an enigma, hand picked by a liar to use as a diversion to prevent the truth hiding in plain sight from being recognized as a forgery for the real fake answer." I really liked that description. It's very fitting for a story where basically all the main characters have been lying to you for most of the narrative.
> 
> I actually wrote an author's note yesterday that I subsequently deleted because I thought no one would care, but apparently, some of you do, which is great! So if you look back at some of the earlier chapters in this story, you'll start noticing a few minor details that are intriguing. This is part of what took me so long to write this story. For instance, every time the Doctor reveals a fact that Lantro's supposed to find shocking, but which he already knows, there's always a small pause before he reacts to it. That's the tiny little delay in which Lantro is thinking, "How does he expect me to react to this?" There are a small number of times that Lantro doesn't pause, and these are because he is genuinely surprised. Also, note the times Lantro reaches into his pocket, now that you know his gun is in there.
> 
> Despite all these nice little clues, I will confirm that the reviewer is correct. At the moment, you don't have enough information to work out the full truth. I promise that you will. But at the moment, you don't.
> 
> But this scene brings you a lot closer than you were at the end of the last scene.

"Bivazeer," the Doctor muttered. His eyes lit up, and he smiled at Mutajar. "Of course! You've narrowed it down. One of us must have the watch."

"Either have it," said Mutajar, "or know where it is." She stepped forwards. "Bivazeer was your friend, Doctor. He knew all about your travels and companions and boundless curiosity. He transformed himself into a member of your favorite species on purpose."

"To make sure I'd be able to find the watch," the Doctor realized, "and wake him up." He tapped his chin, tilting his head to the side to consider. "I see..."

Lantro crossed his arms. "I'm telling you, Zeera's human."

The Doctor's eyes lit up. "Actually, now that you mention it," he said to Mutajar, "Bivazeer _did_ hand me the strangest note just before he died." He scratched his head, struggling to remember. "You know the sort of thing. A set of coordinates. A series of people to talk to. The planet name 'Galia-4'."

Lantro turned on the Doctor. "What?!"

"I mentioned a note when we first met — and you asked me why I was here," the Doctor said, as he started rummaging through his pockets. "Remember? That whole 'secret pockets' comment?" He winked. "Turns out, my pockets already have secrets." He pulled out some taffy, a piece of string... "Let's see, let's see... note, note..." He pulled out a satsuma. Blinked. Held it up, squinting. "Oh, hello. I thought I lost you back at Jackie's."

Mutajar's eyes glowed with eagerness and greed. "Hurry, Doctor. Hurry!" She shifted the gun so it was aimed at Lantro. "Give me Bivazeer — or this human dies!"

"You've got to be kidding me," Lantro muttered. Pointed at the Doctor. "Him?! You're threatening my life based on _him_?"

Mutajar laughed. "Make me a better offer."

Lantro blinked. "What do you mean?"

" _You_ have looked everywhere for it," said Mutajar. " _He_ is the one Bivazeer intended to find it." She grinned. "Each of you, if alone, would lie and dither and bluff. Each alone would defeat my plans. But together..." Her eyes narrowed. "I know you have it, Agent Lantro."

Lantro crossed his arms and said nothing.

"Bivazeer will call to him," said Mutajar, her voice very low but somehow very powerful. "Wherever you've hidden it, the Doctor _will_ find it." She took a step towards Lantro, keeping the gun trained on him. "Are you really going to put your life in the hands of Zeera's murderer?"

For a long moment, Lantro said nothing.

Then he snickered.

"You realize I'm not killing him for the watch, right?" Lantro asked Mutajar, jerking his thumb over towards the Doctor. "I mean, if you really want a reason, I got twenty. He's obnoxious. Annoying. Sanctimonious. He wants to shut this place down. He wants to stop the arms sales. I could go on all day." He shrugged and stuck his hands into his pockets. "So go ahead. Let him search. He won't find anything. There's nothing to find." His eyes narrowed. "She's human."

"Oh, give it up, Lanty boy!" the Doctor complained with a sigh, dropping the string and the taffy to the floor. "Her name's Zeera Bev, and you don't think she's Bivazeer? She knows how to hack a TARDIS, she's been in charge of all the Time Lord technology around here, and you've been systematically killing anyone who might be able to guess her secret." He drew out a Betamax tape of the Little Mermaid, a miniature golf trophy, and a stapler. "Oh, and me! You brought me here." He nodded. "Yep — seems to me the Apos'alu has worked this one out 100% correctly. I mean, why else would I be here, if not for Bivazeer?"

Lantro glared at the Doctor. "I didn't..." He yelped, as the Doctor threw the satsuma at him to shut him up.

"Still looking! Won't be a minute!" the Doctor said, continuing to clear out his pockets. "Let's see... note... note..." He pulled out a book. Squinted at the cover. "'One Thousand Ways to Play the Cello While Standing on Your Head.'"

"I didn't bring him here!" Lantro shouted. "I _hate_ him!" He held out his hand, expectantly. "Look, I'll prove it. Give me back my gun and I'll kill him for you."

The Doctor tossed the book aside. "Lantro, Lantro, that's just proving her point! You know I'm going to find it. You want to kill me before I can get my hands on it." He pointed to the blinky device on Mutajar's ear. "Communications hacker. Been letting her listen in on all Stenman's calls." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a phone cord that had gotten hopelessly tangled. "So she's heard the truth from Stenman's own mouth. You brought me here — not _just_ for the watch — but because you're plotting to cut Stenman and Hoyer out of the business."

"Stenman thinks I'm...?" Lantro smacked himself on the forehead. "Paranoid idiot."

"Well," the Doctor shrugged, "when you start arguing about how to split the pie, people get suspicious." Pulled a rubber fish out of his pockets. "'Didn't pay her enough,' you said."

"They don't," Lantro snapped, crossing his arms. "The deal was an even four-way-split. Not a three-way-split where the fourth one has to pay compound interest on a loan from the third." Looked down at the ground, and muttered, "I'll get them for this..."

"Enough!" Mutajar shouted, her voice so loud that the stones in the walls trembled and the other occupants in the room all winced and covered their ears. "Doctor, give me Bivazeer, or Lantro dies."

"Oh, for crying...!" Lantro threw up his arms. "Look at him! He doesn't have a note. He's lying to save himself."

"No! No, I have it somewhere!" the Doctor cut in, taking a half a teacup out of his pocket. He tilted it, wondering where the other half had gone. "Just, one thing, before I find it..." He dropped the half teacup, so it smashed into shards across the floor. "...why should I?"

Lantro sighed, like the Doctor was such an idiot. "Because, obviously, she'll kill you if you don't."

"She'll kill me either way," the Doctor countered. "And you. And Zeera. Don't kid yourself." He turned back to Mutajar. "So tell me, Apos'alu, why should I help you? Why would I hand my friend over to you, when I know it'll mean the death of both Bivazeer and Zeera Kardeni?"

"To save your companions, of course," said Mutajar, simply.

The Doctor rubbed his hands together. "Ah, that old chestnut." Then, a little more pointedly, "Where are they?"

"Alive," said Mutajar, "for the moment. But moments change very quickly."

Yimi emerged from the Doctor's back. "Seo's still alive? But I thought..."

The Doctor shoved her back behind him again.

"You know I'm telling the truth," said Mutajar. "You built this prison. You know how it works."

"Yes — well, be fair, Biv did all the tricky bits," the Doctor admitted. "But, yes, you're telling the truth. That's for sure." He glanced at Yimi back behind him. "And what about poor — sorry, what was your name, again?"

"Yimi," Yimi said.

The Doctor winked at her. "What about poor Yimi, back here?" He turned back to Mutajar, pointing a thumb behind him. "I'm not finding anything for you until you guarantee she'll be safe."

"I have a better offer," Lantro put in.

All eyes turned to him.

"Well, let's face it — the Doctor's only here for one reason: to threaten me." Lantro, leaned against the wall, hands in his pockets. "I mean, look at him! He's got no note. No clues. He's clearly just telling you what you want to hear and stalling for time." He shrugged. "Now, I'm not saying I've got the watch, and I'm not saying I don't. My story is that Zeera is, and always has been, human, and I'm sticking to that. But since _the Doctor's_ willing to bargain with her life..." His eyes narrowed. "All right, Apos'alu. Let's start talking terms."

The Doctor face palmed. "Lantro, I'm not..."

"Don't lie to my face, Doctor," Lantro cut in, sharply. "I know exactly what you're doing. That's why I want you dead. Like I said before — this isn't my first rodeo."

"You want me to kill the Doctor?" Mutajar guessed.

Lantro laughed at this. "Yeah, I'm guessing I don't have to ask for that." Gestured at Mutajar. "You said he built your prison. You probably hate him more than I do."

"No. But he will die." Mutajar stepped towards Lantro again. "I'm guessing that means you want me to save Zeera Kardeni."

"Yeah, you'd think, huh?" Lantro gestured between the Doctor and Mutajar. "But the thing is, right now, I'm picking between two people pointing a watch at Zeera's head. And I'm thinking..." He turned to the Doctor, "one of them _really_ wants to kill her with it," Turned to Mutajar, "and the other... not so much."

"Lantro..." the Doctor warned.

"It sounds to me like Bivazeer beat you — how many times, now?" Lantro said to Mutajar, ignoring the Doctor. "Two? Three? You don't want him to come back any more than I do. He beat you when you were at full strength. What chance do you stand against him now, when you're part-human and barely holding yourself together?"

Mutajar said nothing.

"But if you're anything like me," said Lantro, "the thing you'll get a real kick out of is getting to see your greatest rival reduced to a mere frightened human, kneeling before you and begging for her life. So no — I'm betting you're gonna keep her alive anyways."

Mutajar hesitated. "Then... what do you want?"

Lantro grinned, his eyes twinkling. "I want to see you do it."

Mutajar raised an eyebrow.

"I want to see you murder that smarmy Time Lord Bivazeer," said Lantro, "who's hiding in that watch, just waiting to leap out and kill Zeera at a moment's notice. Because, after all these years searching for him, knowing what he's going to do and hating his guts for it, I just really, _really_ want to see that motherfucker die."

The Doctor ran his hand down his face, disappointed and disgusted.

"If you know where the watch is, Doctor, hand it over," Lantro snapped. "Otherwise, I'd say you've got no bargaining chips." He turned back to Mutajar. "Just leave me Zeera — and let me see you kill Bivazeer. And I'll hand it over."

Mutajar advanced on him, a smile creeping up her face. "Look me in the eye and tell me — will that make you happy? Watching a Time Lord die? Watching _that_ Time Lord die?"

"Don't," the Doctor said.

Lantro looked straight into Mutajar's eyes. "Yes. Like you wouldn't believe."

In three steps, Mutajar was directly in front of Lantro, pressing the barrel of the gun against his forehead.

Lantro didn't flinch. Just kept his eyes fixed on hers.

"You are filled with so many lies, Lantro," Mutajar whispered, still not breaking his gaze. "So much deceit. So much hate. So much lust for revenge." Her lips twitched into a smile. "I see them through you. I see your soul."

The smugness on his face began to falter, then turned into a silent scream — as he could no longer break Mutajar's gaze.

"And through your eyes, I see the truth," said Mutajar. "You don't have the watch. You don't even know where it is! But you think the Doctor does — and you'll kill him, take it, and hand it over. Because you've spent so long trying to save her, so long hating the Time Lord that would kill her, that you would do anything to see him burn." Her grin spread, as Lantro gasped in horror. "But that's the thing, Time Agent Lantro. Bivazeer and Zeera are one and the same."

Little specks of emotions — hatred, revenge, anger, desperation — rose from Lantro's body in blobs that turned into little piranhas, circling him hungrily before turning on him and tearing at his skin.

"Look into my eyes and watch what I have planned," said Mutajar. "Watch your 'Zeera' scream. Watch her writhe and suffer and die. Watch the way I will throw her into the depths of her worst nightmares, so that her terrors and sobs and screams will sing me to sleep at night. Because she _is_ Bivazeer. And making you see her in pain makes my revenge worthwhile."

Lantro screamed, as his emotions and desires, greed and ambition and revenge, grew even more vicious and snappy and eager for blood. His brain was already beginning to melt, as he watched Zeera's death inside Mutajar's eyes.

The Doctor spun around and grabbed Yimi by the shoulders. "You believe the Apos'alu is a god, yes?"

Yimi could barely speak. "I... um..."

The Doctor shook her. "Quickly! Quickly!"

"Yes!" Yimi said. "Yes, I..."

The Doctor smiled at her, then wrapped an arm round her shoulders, leaned in, and pointed at the wall behind them. "That wall doesn't exist. It's an illusion."

"But you ran into it earlier," Yimi protested, "and..."

Lantro began to writhe, his screams growing even louder.

"Trust me," the Doctor begged. He shoved his hand over her eyes. "Look behind the wall. Use your belief. What do you see?"

"I..." Yimi squeaked, "I don't..." But she could feel something, so close to the Apos'alu. A sort of power. She could see through it — not with her eyes, but with her mind. "A dark place. A bad place." She focused, and it became clearer and clearer. As if she had her eyes open. "A land of ifs and what-ifs and never-weres. A river of ghosts. The ground sighs with maybes and better-nots. Nothing is steady, everything is changing. Always changing." She began to walk towards the wall, her hand outstretched. "There's someone in the middle. I can see her!"

"Who is it, Yimi?" the Doctor pressed. "What does she look like?"

"It's... I don't know... featherless," Yimi said, concentrating. She took another step forwards. "Chained up. It's..." She gasped, her eyes opening. "It's Seo!" And before she even knew what she was doing, she was running forwards, towards her friend. "She's alive!"

Mutajar looked up, breaking Lantro's gaze.

She only just caught the wall ripping itself apart around Yimi and the Doctor and allowing them through. Mutajar howled with rage, dropping Lantro to the ground and racing after them. She smacked into a solid wall.

The Doctor and Yimi were gone.

"No, no, no!" Mutajar pounded her fists against the wall, but it remained solid. "Get back here! I will kill you for this!"

Lantro groaned from his spot on the ground.

Mutajar glanced back at him. Narrowed her eyes. And shot him through the forehead.

Then turned the gun on herself.

Both their bodies slumped to the floor, lifeless.

The vortex manipulator on Mutajar's wrist faded away, leaving nothing but a tan mark to show where it had been.


	31. Chapter 31

Yimi's eyes snapped open as she tumbled into a puddle of mud beside the Doctor. The world around them was black and bleak, save for the shimmering glow of distant magma. Disembodied screams and terrified-looking ghosts echoed around them. Yimi tried to sit up, but was suddenly overcome with the illusion that she was surrounded by high-rise buildings — and a bomb was falling towards her. She screamed and ducked — but then it was gone.

She got up, and thought she could see a strange, furry-looking creature screaming as it was dissected by tin pepper-pot looking things — but then that vanished too.

The Doctor grinned, offering her a hand and hauling her to her feet. "Hello. Don't believe we've been introduced. I'm the Doctor. You're Yimi. That was the Apos'alu." He spun around, dragging her after him. "And this is the part where we run!"

Yimi's feet burned as she ran. She couldn't see Seo anywhere now. She couldn't figure out how she'd managed to before.

"How did I...?" Yimi asked.

"Leap of faith!" the Doctor replied — quite cheerily, Yimi thought, for someone who'd been threatened with almost certain death a few minutes ago. "Sort of. A bit. You reached for something using your faith in the Apos'alu. That gave us a direct path to her power base. Biv came up with that trick." He grinned. "Good ol' Biv."

Yimi shivered as she passed through a stretch of air that felt like an arctic tundra for no reason. Then it was gone.

"Now, technically, that shouldn't have worked," the Doctor continued, "since Biv blew up Nitvenah way back. But I figured that, the moment this prison was reconfigured as a vault, the Apos'alu would have taken full advantage and recreated her home planet. That's probably why she was able to start breaking free. Well, that and the chameleon arch. And Faye Mutajar. And Seo, come to think of it." He reflected, scratching his chin. "Good thing Biv's not here to see that one."

"The Abo...?" Yimi winced, as she found herself overcome with yet another vision — this one of death and blood and a battlefield. It left her as soon as it had come. "Seo said Abozalu was someone called 'the Master'."

The Doctor winced. "Because he taunted us about that fob watch over and over again on the Valiant, but Seo never actually knew why." He sighed. "This, Yimi, is a good example of how my marvelous and rather brilliant system of saying, 'I'll explain later' and then never actually explaining later — starts to break down. See..." They stumbled to a stop as a geyser of magma and steam and water exploded in front of them. The Doctor yanked them both out of the way of it as it splashed down where they'd just been standing. "Never mind! I'll explain later." Then he yanked her behind him and they ran in a different direction.

Yimi was panting heavily, struggling to keep up.

"Apos'alu!" the Doctor said, slowing a bit for Yimi as he kept running through the dark landscape. "Incredible mental powers, the Apos'alu. At full power, she could see through any lie, manipulate any person. Even a Time Lord like me."

Yimi looked lost.

The Doctor glanced at her. "Sure you want to hear the full story? Might put a bit of a dent in your belief that the Apos'alu is a god."

Yimi nodded.

"Well, then," the Doctor said. "Buckle up!"

* * *

Kardeni, for a moment, wouldn't answer Jenny's question.

"Zeera!" Jenny snapped.

Kardeni closed her eyes, giving a long, heavy sigh. "My parents used to research Time Lords. Some of the things they found were beautiful. Amazing. Other things were terrifying." She shuddered. "I stumbled across some mention of a monster who melted people's brains and left them writhing as they were literally eaten alive by piranhas made of their own shortcomings." Her hands trembled. "It gave me nightmares. I used to wake up screaming."

Jenny had a feeling she knew where this was going. "And that's what's here?"

"I couldn't believe it at first," Kardeni said, opening her eyes. "I thought it had to be some kind of sick, twisted joke." She shuddered. "But it isn't. It's really here. And I think... it's after _me_."

* * *

"Before the Time War," the Doctor explained, "there was a third planet in this system. Galia-3! Formerly known as Nitvenah. During the war, there was a particularly nasty battle fought on Nitvenah. Destroyed nearly all life on the planet. Left it looking..." He gestured around them. "Sort of like this."

"And you fought at this battle?" Yimi asked.

" _I_ didn't," said the Doctor. "Bivazeer did. But later in the war — much, _much_ later — Ollistra stuck us together on some counterintelligence missions. Rubbish missions! But Biv was all right. Dependable. Moral. Brilliantly clever." His head sagged, eyes fixed on the ground, sadness seeping into his features. "Shame he died, really..."

* * *

Kardeni kept stabbing at barely-functional buttons, still attempting to find some way to get Lantro out. The screens flickered, then died again.

"The Apos'alu," Kardeni said with a shudder, as she pried a panel off the main console. "According to that warning I found from Biv on the battle TARDIS, its species evolved on Galia-3 after the Time War ravaged the planet's surface. They were linked to the planet." She began rewiring things. "They felt the pain and fear and anger of its previous inhabitants who'd been ripped apart and burnt and turned inside out. So when they took to the stars, they plotted their revenge."

"The... Apos'alus?" Branden asked.

"No — I don't know what their species was called," Kardeni said. "But it was a hive society, dependent on their Queen. 'Apos'alu' is their word for 'Queen'." She grabbed a spare part from a nearby derelict device, and slotted it into place. "Separated from each other, both the swarm and the Apos'alu would be weakened. That was what Biv was supposed to do. Separate them, capture the Apos'alu, and take it back to Gallifrey."

"But he didn't," Jenny guessed.

"And that's the warning," Kardeni confirmed. "Biv claims he has proof that Rassilon chose the weapons used in the Battle of Nitvenah on purpose, to kill off the natives and force-evolve a more useful species. He..." She suddenly started laughing. "I guess you could call it 'Plate Cracking'. Rassilon 'Plate Cracked' the species into existence."

* * *

"And that's where we come to the Apos'alu," the Doctor said. "She looked a bit like a phoenix, back then. All fire and feathers. Her race evolved out of this temporal chaos," he spread out his arms to gesture at the constantly shifting, temporally scarred landscape around them, "its evolution shaped by the weapons that were dropped here and the paradoxes that were formed here as time changed over and over and over again." Dropped his hands. "Apos'alu. Insanely powerful. Terrifyingly telepathic. Could survive the worst ravages of the Time War. Used to swoop into the midst of a battle and just kill everyone. Destroy everything. Parsec after parsec after parsec — dead." He wiped some of the hair from his eyes. "Used to do it to neutral planets, too. Nasty."

Yimi nodded.

"Thing is, the Apos'alu and her swarm always returned to Nitvenah," the Doctor said. "Had to be a reason. Didn't know what. But it meant we knew where to find them. So Ollistra sent a team of us —Biv and myself included — out to Nitvenah to destroy the swarm and capture the Apos'alu."

"You were there?" Yimi asked.

"Oh, yes, I was there," the Doctor said. "Daleks were, too. They sent in their own team. Tried to beat us to it." He sighed, face filled with awful memories. "It was a bloodbath. _Everyone_ was killed. It was all down to Biv and me, in the end. I still can't quite believe we pulled it off."

"What did you do?" Yimi asked.

"Biv worked it out," the Doctor said. "The planet Nitvenah, itself, was the species' power source. That's why he destroyed it." He scanned the horizon, then changed course slightly — as Yimi struggled to keep up. "Then we had to decide what to do. Of course, we both knew better than to hand the Apos'alu to Rassilon..."

"Why?" Yimi asked.

"Let's just say we had our suspicions about his role in all this," said the Doctor. "So that was out. Bivazeer wanted to kill the whole species, but I talked him out of it."

Yimi seemed surprised.

"So we built this place," the Doctor said, "out of Biv's TARDIS. We grounded it so it couldn't fly. Locked them all inside. The swarm's at the center — surrounded by an impenetrable barrier that could only be unlocked by a certain encryption key. Bivazeer knew it. Well, he wasn't supposed to. No one was supposed to. But he had that sort of mind. See something once, and it's in there forever."

Yimi nodded.

"The Apos'alu," the Doctor continued, "we ripped into little subsections of herself and scattered across the outer layers of the prison. Meant that if any bit of her escaped, the other pieces of herself would pull her back in." He trailed off, a frown settling across his face. "She must have used the chameleon arch to reunite most of herself. And now she's killing off the scraps of herself that didn't make it in. Clever."

For a moment, he said nothing.

Just thinking.

"Yes, right, where was I? Oh, yes!" The Doctor clapped. "Built the prison. Trapped the Apos'alu. Big success." His mirth died down into a sigh. "And then the Daleks caught up with us. The internal dimensions of Biv's TARDIS were folding in on themselves to create the prison. The Daleks were everywhere. Biv and I just ran and ran and ran. Never thought we'd make it out alive." He ran a hand down his face. "Next thing I knew, Biv'd managed to activate some kind of teleport. Shoved me inside. 'Right behind you!' he said. And then..." The Doctor clicked his fingers. "Just like that. Just one second. He was gone. Killed by a Dalek."

Yimi could see the horror in his eyes as he relived the memory.

"Such a waste," the Doctor muttered. "Such a pointless, stupid waste."


	32. Chapter 32

"So Biv decided not to bring the Apos'alu to Gallifrey?" Jenny said. "But to imprison it?"

"Inside his TARDIS, yes," Kardeni confirmed, still working inside the console. "I don't know what happened after that. He got kind of vague. But I know he wrote that message I showed you after he returned a second time. He claimed he had proof that Rassilon was behind all of it." She jumped up and tried again, but the console didn't work. "The original design of the prison was to be a gravitational anomaly that no one could ever access." She kicked the console. "When Biv returned, he wanted to move the prison back into normal space-time, so he could prove to the Time Lords that he was right. But I guess he got interrupted before he finished."

"You mean he made one stable access point — which Lantro found," Jenny guessed. "But other little access points open up randomly and unexpectedly, causing ships to constantly crash into it."

Kardeni nodded, fiddling with some settings.

"So why's the Apos'alu after _you_?" Branden asked.

"Because of some stupid joke of Andrew's," Kardeni said, spinning around to face them, "that's gone terribly, horribly wrong! Now, the Apos'alu is convinced that I'm..."

With a loud "schwump" sound, the door to the outside unlocked and whirred open, revealing a horde of dead creatures on the ground and their killer — a well-armed and furious Stenman — stepping through, raising his gun. Branden screamed and collapsed as a staser bolt slammed into his chest. Jenny just barely ducked the next shot — and Kardeni leapt in between Jenny and Stenman's staser, shielding her.

"Is that supposed to be a disincentive? Having to shoot you first?" Stenman kept the staser pointed at Kardeni. "You were supposed to be next. And your boyfriend. I've had more than enough of you two conspiring behind my back!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Kardeni said. "I told you, I haven't spoken to Andrew in two…"

"Oh, give it a rest! Edmund and I know everything," said Stenman. "Lantro clearly wants that Apos'alu weapon thing you found for himself. I _had_ assumed that was why he poisoned you — to stop you from warning us. Of course, on my way back here, I had a rather enlightening visit to the hospital, where a pile of cash managed to get me access to your medical file. Guess what I found out about your 'poisoning'?"

"I can explain..." Kardeni said.

"What's there to explain?" Stenman advanced on her. "The vault is open. All the creatures are free. That's practically a signed confession."

Kardeni stumbled backwards — bumping into Jenny. "But _I_ didn't release the creatures in the vault! It was..."

"The Battle TARDIS only responds to you — that's what you always say, isn't it?" Stenman snapped. "So who else could have released...?"

Kardeni screamed.

A firestorm whipped out from nowhere, wrapping itself around her as she began to disappear. She pulled something out of her pocket — a bleeping device — stared at it, stunned... and then she vanished.

* * *

"And the watch?" Yimi asked.

The Doctor perked up a bit. "Yes. That's a thing, isn't it? Never expected that. Almost enough to get one's hopes up." He quickly explained to her about the chameleon arch. Then, leaning over, whispered to Yimi, "Small question. Pretty sure the answer's no. Just have to ask. You haven't been hiding a broken fob watch with strange astral symbols on the front, right?"

Yimi shook her head. "Aren't you?"

"Me? Oh, no," the Doctor waved his hands emphatically. "No, no, no! I watched Biv die. He never left me anything to indicate he'd survived. No notes, no clues, no nothing. When Lantro brought up the watch, I thought maybe..." He trailed off, the bitter crush of disappointment washing across him. "But no. No. It was all a lie."

"You don't want to get your hopes up again," Yimi observed.

"Yes," the Doctor said. Then, "No!" Then, "Possibly." He brushed his fringe out of his eyes. "Zeera's a common name for this century. So's Beverley. Lantro hasn't told the truth yet. And Biv left me no note." The Doctor put his hand to his head. "Even that telepathic signal was a fake, put into my head by the Apos'alu." He dropped it. Stared ahead as he ran, looking sad and very, _very_ alone.

"But maybe you're wrong," Yimi said. "You thought you were before. You told the Apos'alu that you thought Lantro's friend _was_ Biv!"

"Of course I did — she said it was the only reason I was still alive!" the Doctor said. "I wasn't about to say, 'No, that's daft; Biv's dead and Lantro clearly made the whole thing up.' She'd have killed me on the spot." He looked down at Yimi. "You saw what she did to Lantro."

Yimi nodded. Then frowned, confused. "But why did she kill Lantro and not you?"

"Oh, well, she was keeping me alive because she thought I'd be able to find it," the Doctor explained, adjusting his bow tie. "She was keeping Lantro alive because she thought he'd _already found_ it."

"And he hadn't."

"Nope! It was all a lie," said the Doctor. "Lantro looked the Apos'alu straight in the eye. In her currently weakened state, that's the only way she'd be able to tell if he was lying. And she said he was." The Doctor frowned, thinking a moment. "Actually, now that you mention it — that wasn't what she said. She said Lantro thought _I_ had it. So maybe... just maybe..."

The Doctor trailed off.

Then he sighed and shook his head. "Agent Lantro. I never did work him out in the end."

* * *

Stenman stared at where Kardeni had just vanished. His jaw dropped.

Jenny leapt at him. Caught by surprise, he almost dropped the gun the moment she jumped him, so she was easily able to grab it from him, grab him by the wrist, twist him around and slam him against the wall — gun at his head.

"Right," said Jenny. "I don't know what that was all about — but my dad and Seo are still stuck inside that vault of yours. So you're going to help me get them out."

Stenman gave a bitter laugh. "Good luck retrieving them without Kardeni. She's the only one who could get the TARDIS to cooperate. None of the rest of us knew how."

Interesting...

But Jenny didn't have time to get into that right now.

"Why did you come in here?" she demanded. "Not for Kardeni. You had another reason for coming here."

Stenman said nothing.

Jenny's eyes scanned the room — and landed on an incongruous cord dangling from the ceiling. "What's upstairs?"

"Maintenance level," said Stenman. "Nothing important. This room was designed as a maintenance closet."

"And I think I've got my answer." She let him go, but kept the gun trained on him. "Upstairs. Now."

Stenman sighed, but went over to the cord and tugged at it. A hatch opened up in the ceiling, and a gust of wind sucked both Jenny and Stenman up into the upper level, sealing the hatch behind them.

"And... just as I thought," Jenny said, landing gracefully on her feet — even as Stenman wound up flat on his face. "The air conditioning units." She tucked the gun away, and began to inspect them. "I'm guessing you brought some stuff we can use to make sleeping gas, or something else to knock everyone else out down below?"

"Why should I tell you anything?" Stenman demanded.

Jenny sighed. "Because, Mr. Stenman, I think your Apos'alu already got loose — and is trying to find a way to unlock the rest of the swarm from its prison. Kardeni's disappearance is proof enough of that."

"What? Why?" Stenman shook his head. "How do you know all this? Did Zeera tell you?"

Jenny sighed. She thought she could reason out what was going on. The only question now was whether Stenman would actually believe her.


	33. Chapter 33

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about sporadic updates recently. I got food poisoning or something and am not feeling great.
> 
> Enjoy this next chapter!

Yimi glanced at the Doctor. "And Seo...?"

"...has been recruited to take the Apos'alu's place," the Doctor said. He stuck his finger in the air, licked it, considered, then changed direction. "When you saw her, what was she like? Dizziness? Confusion? Passing out? Random bleeding? Visions?"

Yimi nodded. "She said she saw herself as a prisoner, like Abo... Apos'alu."

"Yes, well, those weren't visions," the Doctor replied. "That was her getting trapped. By the time Lantro shot her, there was just a fraction of her left unchained. That fraction died — but the rest of her survived." He grinned, as he spotted something in the distance. "And there she is!"

There she was.

Struggling, calling out, chained to a rock — Seo looked just the way Abozalu had in all the murals and portraits and stained glass windows and tapestries.

The ground shook.

The Doctor grabbed Yimi and yanked her back, as a rift opened up just in front of her. It began to well with magma, its hot ooze nearly melting Yimi's feathers.

Seo spotted them and shouted out to them, but it was hard to hear her over the roar of the magma vents.

A familiar human figure stepped behind her — dagger in hand. "You know, there's something very unusual about your companion's blood," Mutajar said. "In the right time and place, it can produce explosive results."

"Listen to me, Apos'alu — you're not the first one who's tried this!" the Doctor called out to her. "Her blood's too powerful. It'll destroy..."

"What? The universe?" Mutajar said. "But we're not in the universe anymore, Doctor. You know that. You built this prison that way on purpose — to make sure Rassilon couldn't find me. So if you're worried about _this prison's_ walls breaking down..." She stabbed the dagger down. "Newsflash! That's what I'm going for!"

Yimi tried to run out and stop her, but the Doctor yanked her back, away from the magma, before she could fall in or scald herself jumping over it.

Seo cried out.

But the dagger had just made the tiniest cut above her rightmost heart — just enough to draw blood. Mutajar brought out a little vial and filled it. Stopped the top, staring at it in approval.

"I'm warning you...!" the Doctor said.

"Oh, warn all you like," said Mutajar, walking to them over the cracks in the ground and the magma — as if it didn't affect her in the slightest. "You may have grounded this Battle TARDIS to keep me trapped. But you didn't ground _your_ TARDIS."

A wheezing, groaning sound echoed, and the Doctor snapped his head over to the right, staring in disbelief as the familiar, police-box shaped TARDIS materialized nearby.

He practically dragged Yimi off her feet, as he sprinted for it.

"Maybe I don't need Bivazeer after all," said Mutajar, bringing out a small device from her pocket. "Maybe you and she can both die together — the way you deserve. Scared and alone and forced to confront your deepest, darkest nightmares."

She pressed a button on the device.

Yimi yelped, letting go of his hand as fire leapt around the Doctor. He didn't stop running, even as the flames spread. His hand had nearly caught hold of the TARDIS doors... when he faded into nothing.

Yimi stared. "Doctor?" She glanced back, assuming she'd see Seo... but there was no one. The expanse behind her was empty. "Seo? Anyone?"

Her voice echoed in the suddenly empty, suddenly soundless landscape.

She realized... this was the most alone she'd ever felt.

Ever.

Mutajar gave a smug smile, as she passed the spot where the Doctor had disappeared. She reached into her pocket, and took out a small Yale key on a string. Carefully, she fitted it into the lock of the police box.

"And me?" Yimi demanded, storming up to her. She threw open her feathery arms. "What happens to me?"

Mutajar blinked, shifting her eyes over to Yimi — as if she'd only just remembered that Yimi was there. "Oh. You." She shrugged. "I don't know. Do what you want. It's your life... well, for the next hour or so."

Mutajar unlocked the door. The gentle light from the TARDIS splashed across her face, making her eyes glimmer in eager anticipation.

"But I don't even know how to get home!" Yimi shouted. "My people worshipped you — and you're just going to strand me here?"

"Your home is long gone," Mutajar scoffed. "I tore down the boundaries separating all the different worlds. Slurped up the Main Complex into the top layer of the Battle TARDIS. Then infused everyone with a great big helping of rage. It's a battle royale up there — and everyone's losing." She waved it off, dismissively. "Your people never stood a chance. First ones slaughtered, I expect."

"What?!"

"Oh, boo-hoo! Get over it," Mutajar said, without even turning around to face Yimi, as she walked inside the ship. "Your people were never supposed to exist in the first place, you know."

"Yeah? Well neither were yours!" Yimi shouted, running towards Mutajar and the TARDIS. She tried to step inside... but something intangible stopped her.

Mutajar stopped in place.

Slowly, she looked back over her shoulder at Yimi.

"Your people would never have emerged if not for the Doctor's War," said Yimi, pointing to the spot where he used to be. "Who's to say that battle was a coincidence? Who's to say you weren't force-evolved, just the same way we were?"

Mutajar hesitated. "Bivazeer... mentioned something like that."

Yimi clung to the door, her heart beating fast. "We both were manipulated. Both used. Both betrayed. But I have believed — in _you_. In my darkest hour, I have always believed in you. It's given me strength."

"Am I supposed to care?" Mutajar asked. "I owe you and your people nothing, Yimi. You're like... bath salts. I use you and then I flush you down the drain." Turned back to the central console. "I owe nobody anything."

"Except the Doctor," said Yimi.

Mutajar froze.

"Bivazeer wanted to kill you," Yimi said. "The Doctor convinced him to spare your life — and the lives of your people." Her hands were shaking. "And you know that. I saw you with the blue-chinned man! He wanted you to say you hated the Doctor! You didn't."

"What the Doctor did to me was a mercy," Mutajar hissed, "not a kindness."

"And what did you show him?" Yimi snapped. "Neither."

Mutajar hesitated.

"Please," Yimi begged. "Do the same kindness for me. Save my people."

Yimi held her breath as, for a long, long while, Mutajar didn't move.

Then, finally, with a sigh, Mutajar bowed her head. "Perhaps I do owe the Doctor something. Not everything. Not all three of his demands. Just one." She unstrapped the vortex manipulator from around her wrist and turned to Yimi. "You," she said, as she tossed it. "No one else. Just you."

Yimi caught the VM. "Me?"

"As in — you've got one journey on that thing before it burns out," said Mutajar. She nodded at it. "I programmed in the coordinates of a very nice planet on the other side of the universe." She turned back to the TARDIS console. "Now get out of here before I change my mind."

Yimi stared at it. "But my people...!"

"Are dead," Mutajar snapped, rounding the central console. "And Seo and Jenny will soon join them. I told you — the Doctor did me a mercy, not a kindness. If he'd done both, I might have saved all three of you." She unstopped the vial, and poured the blood over the console. A strange green glow came over it. "Of course, if you'd prefer to die with the rest of the Patasi, you can find those coordinates in the vortex manipulator, too. But like I said — you only get one jump. So save yourself, or die with the others." She glanced back, with a scowl. "Now, if you don't mind, I have to release my swarm and destroy this side of the universe. Goodbye."

Then, with a rush of wind, the double doors snapped shut in Yimi's face.

And with a wheezing groan, the police box faded away into nothing.

Yimi looked around herself. There was only an endless stretch of dull rock and lava and an empty black sky. She could walk for miles and miles and never find anyone. And she needed to act fast if she was going to save her people.

Yimi began to poke at buttons on the vortex manipulator... and words popped up onto the display. Of course, Yimi could still read them. She had the gift of languages from Abozal... from the Battle TARDIS.

The other side of the universe...

The Ouribiu Overgrowth World...

The Badger-Beaver Poison World...

The Revolutionary Patasi World...

The Abozalu-worshipping Patasi World...

And then Yimi found a location that caught her eye.

"SHC Main Complex, Galia-4," Yimi read aloud.

Thoughts flashed through her mind, faster and faster, as she repeated the words. What had Seo said? When everything went wrong, her sister was the one who fixed things. And everything had definitely gone wrong. The Main Complex was where her people were. It was where Seo's sister Jenny was. It was Yimi's only chance to save her people — and maybe save her brother.

Yimi hesitated for only a second.

Then she closed her eyes. "I have faith," she said, "in you, Seo. Because you were right — between my god and my family, I choose my family."

And she pressed the button to activate the vortex manipulator.


	34. Chapter 34

For a moment, when the blade had touched her skin, the pain had been so intense that Seo had blacked out.

Now, as she opened bleary eyes, she came face-to-face with a translucent glowy person. There was a faint trace of a song as he walked — a song that reminded Seo vaguely of the TARDIS or of Oliver, except this song was far more discordant and violent and melancholy.

"You're the TARDIS." Seo stared at where she imagined the translucent creature would have eyes — if it had eyes at all, which it didn't. "Listen. I don't know if you can help me, but Father and Yimi are still out there. I need to find them, before..."

She screamed, as the glowing figure shoved its hand inside her chest...

...and tore her into a thousand tiny shards.

* * *

"What is that?!" Stenman demanded, stepping forwards, his eyes fixed on the strange machine Mutajar had built in the basement of the Main Complex. "And how did anyone manage to build it down here without us noticing?" His eyes narrowed. "Zeera's going to pay for this..."

Jenny briefly considered punching Stenman in the nose for being such an idiot, but sighed and decided she probably didn't have time. Instead, she just ran over and worked on trying to get the machine operational again.

"I'll bet this is what Lantro was really up to," said Stenman, rounding the machine suspiciously. "I should never have trusted him, the two-faced, lying..."

"You're not helping — you know that?" Jenny tried connecting two severed wires — and the machine began to spark and make a sharp whining noise. She quickly disconnected them. "Look, go out into the hall and separate all the creatures before they wake up. I'm busy."

Stenman grumbled, but headed towards the door to do as Jenny asked.

He froze in place, halfway there.

Jenny froze as well, by the machine.

Both of them slowly put a hand to their head, blinking and looking around themselves as if they'd just woken up from a dream.

So did all the creatures who'd been knocked out in the corridor.

"Oh." Jenny stepped away from the machine, staring at it. "How ridiculous of me. Of course it needs to stay off. The bloodbath must continue." She put her hands against her hearts. "And I have to die."

Stenman went off to get her a gun. "Apos'alu be praised."

"Apos'alu be praised," Jenny repeated. She twisted around, trying to make out her reflection in the metal of the machine. "What do you think — bullet through the head?" She tried to mime possible trajectories. "Or maybe one through each heart? I mean, I have to make it horrible. After all, Dad refused to hand over that fob watch, so he has to pay for..."

With a sudden flash, a Patasi carrying a vortex manipulator appeared from nowhere. She looked around herself — and her eyes landed on Jenny. "Can you help me? I'm trying to find 'Jenny' — Seo's sister. It's important!"

Before the Patasi had even finished speaking, Stenman and all the creatures in the corridor raced into the room, grabbing Yimi roughly and twisting her feathered arms behind her back. She yelped, the vortex manipulator dropping from her hands and skittering across the floor.

Jenny bent down and picked it up. She frowned, looking between it and the Patasi who had just appeared.

"Stop it! What are you doing?" the Patasi was shouting at her captors. She struggled, but couldn't break free. "Abozalu is about to get out! I need to save my people! Please...!"

"You dare to mock the Apos'alu?" Stenman glared at her. "You miserable wretch. I should kill you where you stand."

Jenny closed her hand around the vortex manipulator. "Seo... Dad..."

Then she gritted her teeth and, head down, charged at the Patasi, slamming into her head-first, sending both the Patasi and everyone restraining her sprawling across the floor like bowling pins. Jenny grabbed her head in her hands, her eyes going wide as her mind finally cleared.

"Seo! Dad! Zeera!" Jenny jumped to her feet and dragged the Patasi out of the pile, tugging her along as Jenny ran back to the machine. "I don't know who you are or how you overcame that... whatever it was... but thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Jenny frantically began reassembling the machine as the remaining group slowly got to their feet, turning on Jenny with a new malevolence in their eyes.

The Patasi shuddered back. "What's happened to them?"

"I don't know — but whatever's affecting them, it's weak at the moment," Jenny said, not missing a beat in her work. "That's why they're moving so slowly. The signal's plagued by transmission delays. Who are you, by the way?"

"I'm... Yimi," Yimi explained, still nervously watching the crowd in front of them as they began to gather their weapons, pointing them at Jenny and Yimi. "Are... I mean... they aren't really going to kill us?"

"Oh, I'm pretty sure they will. Unless I can finish this and separate the dimensions." Jenny squeezed her eyes shut. "Think, Jenny, think! What else can make this thing work?" She snapped her eyes open, a grin on her face. "Aha!" She grabbed the Patasi by the hand, and stuck it in the center of the machine.

The Patasi squeaked as a small electric shock raced through her body, and she yanked her hand away. "Hey!"

The machine suddenly glowed a far more vibrant green, as it shuddered back into life.

"Oh, yes!" Jenny shouted. "Yes, yes, yes!" She began racing around the machine, quickly flipping every switch on its outside to reverse all the settings. "If I can just undo everything that's been..."

The machine blinked up a warning: "Power Level Insufficient. Time to full power: 2 hours."

"Two hours?!" Jenny kicked the machine. "We don't have two hours!"

"No," said Stenman, stepping forwards. "You don't even have five minutes." He turned to the crowd behind him. "Kill them."

The crowd screamed, then surged forwards.

"Hold onto me," Jenny shouted at Yimi, shoving the vortex manipulator into the center of the machine. The vortex manipulator began to hum with power. Then, praying for a miracle, Jenny scrambled to poke the buttons on the vortex manipulator...

Jenny and Yimi vanished a millisecond before a barrage of bullets would have punctured their skulls.


	35. Chapter 35

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you not familiar with the series, yes, Seo calls the Doctor "Father". No, he is not her father. This is explained better in Happy Endings. Seo adopts people as her family (for example, Torchwood becomes her family). I got that from my family, who actually does this. My sister, for example, has a set of "East Coast Parents" that she's basically adopted. My great uncle has an entire branch of his family tree that he calls his "honorary" family. And my grandmother used to tell her kids that all her students were their aunts and uncles, so my mom got very confused whenever she had to do family trees in school.

Seo opened her eyes.

Stood up, confused. Looked down at her hands and arms — whole again, without even a trace of blood. But she felt different. Sort of... fragmented.

She heard gunfire in the distance.

"Great!" Seo said to herself, running towards it. "That's probably where he is, then. He'll explain what's going on."

She stopped a short ways away, ducking down behind some fallen rubble. The shots she'd heard were from some kind of battle. Scattered all around were men and women with incredibly sophisticated guns shooting at Daleks with special attachments. Except that they all looked a bit weird to Seo. She couldn't really describe it. If she had to, she'd say they looked flattish, like paper dolls — except they were all using live ammunition.

And there, in the background, trying to hide — was one figure who wasn't a paper doll.

Someone real.

"That's him!" Slowly — carefully — Seo darted from hiding place to hiding place, dodging gun blasts and avoiding grenades as best she could. It was funny, how she could feel out all the weapons around her and buried beneath her, but every time she reached for one, it slipped through her fingers like smoke.

Well, fine!

What did she need guns for, anyways? Father would probably just take them away and make a big stink about it. He could be sort of a git sometimes.

"Surprise!" Seo cried, flipping down into his hiding spot and grinning. "Miss me?" The grin fell off her face. "Wait, you're not Father!"

It was a woman in a mud-drenched business suit, her once tidy hairstyle now disheveled and ragged, her face truly terrified. She plastered herself against the far wall, closing her eyes and trying to will herself invisible.

"No, don't worry! I'm here to rescue you!" Seo grinned, offering her hand. "See? You can trust me because I'm three-dimensional."

The woman opened one eye just enough to give Seo the 'what the hell are you talking about' look. Apparently, no one else could see everything looking all flattish and strange.

"Seek! Locate! Exterminate!" shouted a Dalek nearby, approaching their hiding spot. "Exterminate the Time Lords!"

Seo grabbed the woman and yanked her off the ground. "Talk time is over. Run time!" She practically threw the woman up over the nearby wall that Seo had jumped down, earlier. "The evil exterminatey pepper-pot shaped ones are the bad guys, by the way. They're called Daleks. But if you can't remember that, you can use one of Mom's nicknames for them! Like 'killy-killy-bang-bang.' Or 'mini-Calebs-with-better-guns'."

The Dalek swiveled its eyestalk around... in a lurchy, two dimensional, disconnected way... then spotted Seo.

"LIFE-SIGN detected!" It screamed. "Exterminate!"

Seo only just managed to scramble over the wall as it shot. With another shot, the wall began to crumble.

"Run! Run! Run!" said Seo, grabbing the woman by the hand and sprinting away from the shots. "We need to find Father. It's very important that we really annoy him. Otherwise, he'll see the Daleks and this battlefield and get really sad and depressed about all his friends who died. Self-esteem through irritation, that's my motto!" She glanced back at the woman, and frowned. "Sorry, you are...?"

"I need to talk to the Apos'alu," the woman said. "It's got this all wrong. I'm not who it thinks I am!"

"Well, _I_ think you're a three-dimensional person, like me," said Seo, "and not one of the... paper... dolls..." Seo stopped in place, suddenly letting go of the woman's hand. She stared at her own hand, swiveling it and staring at it from all different angles. "But that's impossible." She pat at her own face. "I feel normal. I can still touch things!" She stared at her paper-thin hand. "But I'm like them. A paper doll."

"What?" The woman shook her head. "Look, I don't have a clue what you're talking about. I just want to find Andrew and get out of here."

"Andrew?" Seo asked.

"Andrew Lantro — the Time Agent," said the woman. "My friend."

"You mean the tall one with the blue chin and the dark uniform?" Seo asked.

The woman nodded.

"Yeah... your friends are more on the killy side," Seo explained, "so I think we're going to hang out with _my_ friends, instead. You'll like them. They don't shoot people for no reason the first time they meet them."

"What are you...?" The woman shook her head, dismissing this. "Andrew can be a little... difficult. I know that. But I'm sure he didn't mean it." She bit her lower lip and looked out, searching the landscape for him. "I just want to make sure he's okay."

"And I'd like to tear his hands from his arms and shove them down his throat," Seo chirruped. "But I think neither of us are going to get our wish. So let's just scrap that and find Father." She began running. Then stopped, and turned around. "Sorry, what was your name again?"

"Zeera," said Kardeni. "Zeera Kardeni. And whatever you think — I'm not a Time Lord! I don't belong here. There's been a mistake!"

Seo scratched her head. "I'm starting to think you might have more problems than me." She spun around, and began running again. "Oh well. Time to go bug Father!"

* * *

Jenny and Yimi reappeared in a room that looked a little like the console room of the Doctor's TARDIS — except it was black and silver, covered with emblems of Rassilon, and surrounded on all sides by an extensive array of holographic monitors — most of them blank or filled with static. Jenny caught her breath, swaying slightly.

"I really, _really_ didn't think I'd be able to reprogram it that quickly," Jenny said. She regained her balance, then ran to the central console — and four circles of auxiliary consoles, around it — in the center of the room. "This is it." She began flipping switches and pressing buttons, and the scanner screens attached to the consoles filled up with text. A smile spread across her face. "This is really it! The control center for everything!"

Yimi looked down at the vortex manipulator — now abandoned on the floor. It was a burned-out wreck once more. She picked it up. "What did you do?"

"Assumed that whatever got inside our heads was boosting its signal using the telepathic circuits of this TARDIS," Jenny said, adjusting a lever and checking the results on a scanner screen. "Which is why the signal was so delayed. It was coming from Galia-3." She shook her head, and tried flipping two more switches, then checking the readouts again. "I knew the timezone of the access point, and tracing the psychic energy, I could compute the coordinates. Very quickly." She shook her head, and unflipped the switches. "You know, the readouts are all still written in that mistranslated Gallifreyan. It's really annoying."

Yimi didn't know what most of Jenny's words meant, so she just nodded and pretended she did. She vaguely wondered who Zeera was, but figured it probably didn't matter.

She began to walk along the outside of the room, her eyes searching each holographic panel, in turn, to find anything she recognized. There was the version of her world that was empty, save for a strange scar across the landscape. There was the small prison cell where she'd been with the Doctor and Lantro. There was the world where Seo was chained to that rock. And... there...

As Jenny kept fiddling with the controls, Yimi watched as another hologram popped up — filled with a swarm of creatures, halfway between birds and mammalian rodents. Each of their feathers blazed with fire, and their eyes were vicious and venomous.

Then, suddenly, the fiery-looking birds were gone.

Yimi stared in horror as birds began to fly through all the other screens — even the ones filled with static or darkness. A knot appeared in the pit of her stomach, as she realized what this must mean. "Jenny..."

"Just a minute!" Jenny called back, squinting at the scanner screen. She began pointing at words. "What does that mean? Peas? Maybe it's split. Division. So 'Prisoner temporal division in spending...' That's probably 'in progress', judging by the hourglass icon... 'Please wait until the zucchini finishes pinecone'." Jenny scowled, and began pressing buttons. "Yes, but I don't want to wait until the zucchini finishes pinecone!" she shouted at it. "Where's the cancel pinecone button on this...?"

She suddenly trailed off.

Yimi spun around, just in time to see Jenny step away from the console and run at her, expertly leaping through the air and tackling Yimi to the ground, hands reaching for Yimi's throat. Yimi, panicked, head-butted Jenny the way she'd seen Jenny do last time.

The moment she did so, Jenny let go and leapt to her feet.

"I'm so sorry! I don't know... what...!" Jenny grimaced, then offered Yimi a hand.

Yimi decided to get up on her own. She figured she should probably keep her distance from Jenny, from now on.

"That's the second time that's happened to me," Jenny realized, running a hand over her head. "It's so... strange! Not at all like I'd expect to feel from someone taking over my mind. More like someone's sneaking in the back door and quietly rearranging all my thoughts and memories so I only do what they want." Jenny frowned, fixing her eyes on Yimi. "Why didn't it affect you?"

"I don't know," said Yimi, still backing away from Jenny and keeping her guard up. "But it's the Apos'alu doing it. I'm sure of that."

Jenny ran back to the central console. "The Apos'alu! Zeera mentioned that. She said it has incredible mental powers."

"The Doctor and his friend imprisoned it here," said Yimi.

Jenny gave a short laugh. "Typical."

"The Doctor said his friend, Biv, wanted to kill the Apos'alu, but he talked Bivazeer out of it," said Yimi. "The Apos'alu really hates Bivazeer. She kept..."

"Biv?" Jenny asked, looking up. "Dad had a friend named Biv?" She pat the console of the Battle TARDIS. "The same Biv who left a long message in Old High Gallifreyan on this TARDIS?"

Yimi shrugged. "I don't really know. Sorry." She turned back to the holographic panels again, skimming her eyes across each one. As she looked, more and more Seos were starting to run around each of the remaining landscapes on the holographic screens. "The Doctor was right. Seo really is being split into pieces."

Jenny blinked. "Wait, what?"

Yimi gestured at the holographic projections around her, explaining to Jenny everything the Doctor had told her about the way he and Biv had imprisoned the Apos'alu and about Seo and the fob watch. By the time she finished, Jenny was standing beside Yimi, her eyes fixed on one of the holographic screens.

"Right," Jenny said, taking this all in. "That must be the reason I can actually see her on the cameras. It's not a sight I'm used to." She paused. Then spun back around to Yimi. "Wait. That splitting apart thing only applies to Seo, right?" Spun back to the screens. "Meaning that, if I find Dad and Zeera on one of these screens — that's where they all really are." Jenny grinned and sprinted back to the central console. "I have to find a way to make a call on this thing."


	36. Chapter 36

The Doctor hurtled himself out of the way of a bomb blast, as he frantically tried to think up a plan. In the absence of one, he was waving his sonic screwdriver about and pretending to look clever, all while frantically trying to keep himself alive. That usually worked until he could figure out a plan.

"EXTERMINATE!"

The Doctor spun around, realizing too late that he'd failed to take into account whatever was behind him. Just before the shot impacted, someone grabbed him by the hand and dragged him down into the mud, where he rolled down a small hill and was pushed into an alcove carved into the hill's underside. He was in the process of spitting out the mud he'd swallowed during his fall, when a stern voice whispered, "Sh!"

They both fell silent, as the Dalek approached. It scanned the battleground ahead of it, surveying the bodies of dead Time Lords for several long seconds.

Then, finally, it decided to assume it had killed its target, and turned around and left.

The Doctor wiped the mud from his eyes and turned to his rescuer. He blinked. "Seo?"

She was covered in mud, and her eyes looked far more tired and weary than normal, but she beamed at him as she always did. "Hello! I'm here to bug you!" She waved her hands to the right. "Oh, and I brought a friend. She's over there-ish."

Another blast exploded above them, showering shrapnel and mud around their hiding spot.

"These paper dolls really have to stop using live ammo," Seo complained, as she and the Doctor huddled together, waiting for the Dalek to pass. "They'll burn themselves up. Me, too, I guess." She thrust her hands in his face. "Why am I made of paper? Please tell me there's a way to un-paper me. I don't like being a doll — it's giving me Celestial Toymaker flashbacks."

The Doctor grabbed Seo's hands. Frowned, examining them. Then, to Seo, "Your hands look fine."

"They're not fine!" She showed him from the side. "See? They're thin, like paper — like the Daleks and the other Time Lords are."

The Doctor shot her a quizzical look. Then he brought her hands up to his face, peering at them more closely. Ducked down to see them from below. Shook his head.

Her hands seemed completely normal.

"Yes, well, that's... worrying," the Doctor decided. "And fascinating! But worrying. Because, see, I built this place — so I know how it works. The systems should still be recalibrating themselves to accommodate you as the prisoner. Until that happens, then what you're talking about — the division of yourself into numerous different Seo-slices — shouldn't be happening. And even if it is, you probably shouldn't be able to see it."

Seo yanked her hand away from him. "What do you mean, you made this place?"

The ground shook, and little bits of dust and rock dropped all around them, as the alcove they were in threatened to collapse.

"This way!" someone shouted at them.

The Doctor looked around. Couldn't see the source of the voice, but it sounded female — and scared.

Seo looked around, but she clearly saw something the Doctor didn't. Her eyes lit up. "Oh, brilliant! She's found us a way out!" She glanced up past the top of the alcove. "We just need to wait until that paper Dalek tries to swivel around."

"Swivel...?"

"So the paper contorts around its gun and it can't fire anymore!" Seo insisted, like it was obvious.

The Doctor couldn't help but give a little laugh. Some days, he'd give his right arm to see the world the way she saw it. First, on the fake Gallifrey, and now, on this fake Nitvenah...

"Now!" Seo shouted, dragging him after her as she ran towards a nearby ruined brick building. Just as the Dalek started firing, the ground dropped out below them and they smashed down into a dried-up sewer. A woman in a muddy business suit grabbed them by the arms and dragged them off. As the Dalek began firing and flying towards them, she kicked a button to her right and the platform that had dropped zoomed back upwards, fitting in place once more.

The only light that remained were the flickering luminescent globes lodged into the walls at regular intervals. The Doctor blinked, as his eyes adjusted.

"How did you know about this place?" Seo asked, impressed. "Or that button?"

"I remembered seeing something about this battle in the data banks of the Battle TAR..." She stopped, as her eyes finally landed on the Doctor. She stared at him. "Oh."

The Doctor looked down at himself. "Oh? Why oh?" He patted his forehead, just in case he had something really obvious poking out of it — like a Dalek eyestalk. He didn't. "What's 'oh' about me?"

"Nothing. Just... nothing." The woman turned around, and began to run down the empty sewer pipe. "Come on. We have to get out of here."

As the Doctor began to run after her, he glanced at Seo — running beside him. "Who's your friend?"

"Zeera something." Seo beamed. "She's three-dimensional, so I saved her."

"Ah!" The Doctor grinned, pat Seo on the back. "Exactly the woman I wanted to meet. Well done." He sprinted forwards so he was running directly beside Zeera Kardeni. "So... 'oh'."

Kardeni said nothing.

"You _recognized_ me," the Doctor asked, "didn't you?"

"Mr. Stenman had me run a scan on you when you entered the Main Complex," said Kardeni, refusing to look at him. "I recognized you from your image on the cameras. That's all."

The Doctor hopped a bit on his feet. "Yes, but I'm betting you didn't 'oh' back then. Not until you saw me in person — and recognized my telepathic Time Lord signal."

Kardeni didn't answer.

"Does the name Bivazeerilordonrayum mean anything to you?" the Doctor asked.

Kardeni's breath caught in her throat. Then she blinked, regained her composure, and kept running. "I know where you're going with this, Doctor. You're going to be disappointed."

They turned a corner and found themselves in a hidden base filled with symbols of Rassilon on the walls and burnt out surveillance machinery around them.

"Let's just get this out of the way," Kardeni said, halting in the middle of the room and turning to face the Doctor. "I know what you're talking about. I know why it's important. But this is all just some stupid joke that went too far." She held open her hands. "Truth is — I don't have a broken fob watch. Never have. I'm human."

The Doctor stopped in front of her. "Ah." Hesitated. Then, leaning in towards her, "Nothing sort of vaguely fob watchy? Something you can't bear to part with? Something you never thought to open, but aren't sure why? Locket? Ring? Very stuck jam jar?"

"There's this." Kardeni reached around the back of her neck and undid the clasp of her crucifix necklace. "Craig gave it to me when we first started dating. Oldest piece of jewelry I've got." She took it off and handed it to him. "Go ahead. I don't mind."

The Doctor took it. Scanned it with his sonic. Shook his head. Tried to open it — but it didn't open. Frowned, staring at it for a few moments.

"Disappointed," the Doctor sighed, handing it back. "Right."

"I'm sorry." Kardeni put the necklace back on. "I just didn't want you to get your hopes up. My friends have always called me a 'Time Lord' as a joke. Every so often, Time War survivors hear the nickname, take it seriously, and come looking for me. The Monans, the Nekkistani, the Unvos — I don't even remember them all. My friends think it's very funny."

"Yes, well, I suppose..." The Doctor stopped. Frowned. Then reached over and put a hand over her eyes. "Describe my face."

Kardeni tried to take his hand away. "What are you...?"

"No, really," said the Doctor, firmly keeping his hand in place. "What do I look like? From memory. Chop, chop!"

"I don't know! Old!" said Kardeni. "Scraggly. Kind of a beard. White hair..."

The Doctor lifted his hand to reveal his actual face.

Kardeni gave a nervous laugh. "I guess it's a little dark down here."

The Doctor nodded slowly. Caught Seo's quizzical look, and answered it back with his own. "How are your parents doing, Zeera?" the Doctor asked. "Have any childhood chums you keep up with? Old neighbors? Grade school pen pals?"

Kardeni turned away. "We should probably..."

The Doctor gave an annoyed sigh and grabbed her by the arm, spinning her back around. "Yes, yes, you don't want to talk about it. But if you haven't noticed..." He pointed his sonic upwards. "Big evil killy space monster. Out there. Right now. Hates you. Thinks you're Bivazeer." Tucked away the sonic. "So — parents?"

For a second, Kardeni didn't speak. Then, finally, she admitted, "Dead."

"Yes, yes, yes, but dead how?" the Doctor insisted. "When? Why? Where?" He clapped his hands in front of her. "Details! I need details!"

"House fire!" Kardeni shouted at him, grabbing his hands. She shoved him away from her. "I was sixteen. I don't want to talk about it."

Seo looked upset about this.

The Doctor draped a hand over her shoulders. "Don't worry. Not real! I forgot you don't know how this works." He quickly explained the chameleon arch process to her. Then he waved a hand at Kardeni. "Standard chameleon arch backstory, really. Conveniently allows her to show up with no past, relatives, belongings, etc."

Kardeni turned on him. "That's not true. I had relatives. They just didn't want anything to do with me." She fidgeted with her necklace. "I was taken in by a family friend. I..." She bit her lower lip. "It was the worst time of my life. The nightmares came back. I started hearing things again. No one wanted to have anything to do with me. Then the rubble from my burnt-out home was burglarized and my parents' office was torched and — I have nothing of theirs, Doctor. Not a photo. Not a keepsake. _Nothing_." She held her necklace tightly in her hand. "If it hadn't been for Jesus..."

Seo's frown deepened. "Sorry, the rubble was burglarized? Is that a thing?"

"You've never lived in a rough neighborhood, have you?" Kardeni stepped back, slumping in place. "Weekly burglaries. Monthly fires. Pretty much everyone I knew was threatened or beat up or shot at some point or another." She looked into the distance, smile lighting up her face. "But I had my Time Lords. My stories and books and Lanterns. It was this beautiful other world where I could escape real life and just enjoy the adventure and excitement and magical majesty of all of it. I read about them. Wrote about them. Dreamed about them."

The Doctor perked up at the word 'dreamed'. "Good dreams? Nightmares?"

The smile dripped off Kardeni's face. "Both." She looked away. "My dad was kidnapped and tortured for information when I was little. My brain meshed it into the Time Lord dreams. It was the only way I could cope."

"Ah." The Doctor grimaced. "That does sound a bit dire for chameleon arch memories, actually." Clasped his hands behind his back. "Well, I suppose maybe you really are just a normal human..." He paused. "No. Just a minute!" Pointed at her. "The Battle TARDIS rescued you."

"Me?" Kardeni put a hand to her chest. "No, it didn't..."

"Yes, it did — because Seo shouldn't be here yet," the Doctor insisted. "That's not the way it's supposed to work. But she is here." He waggled a finger at her. "Why? Because your TARDIS sped up the process, so it could send you a Seo-slice to keep you safe." He stepped towards her. "Zeera, did you say you 'started hearing things again' when your parents died? Hearing how?"

"I don't want to..."

"Big evil killy space monster!" the Doctor reminded her. "You hear the TARDIS, don't you?" Tapped his head. "Up here."

Kardeni fidgeted uncomfortably. Then, muttering, admitted, "I don't know what I keep hearing. It's always been there. Kind of a... singing. Humming. I have medication for it."

"Medication? To stop you hearing the TARDIS?" The Doctor made a face. "Why?"

Kardeni didn't answer.

"Because you told someone about it, and they thought you were mad," the Doctor realized. "Oh, dear." He grimaced. "Did the medication work? Please tell me it didn't work."

"It worked." Kardeni shuddered. "It felt _awful_."

"Oh, it'd feel rubbish," the Doctor confirmed, scratching his own head. "Like a mouse crawled up and died inside your brain." He paused. Then, with a smile, "Did you say _felt_?"

Kardeni said nothing.

"You stopped taking it, didn't you?" The Doctor winked.

Kardeni fidgeted with her necklace. "I... um..." She closed her eyes. "Please don't make me say it. I don't want to be institutionalized again."

The Doctor quickly assured her that she wasn't insane and this was all perfectly normal. But he was feeling more and more disturbed by the whole thing. If these were chameleon arch memories, they seemed unusually dismal and miserable. And the chameleon arch didn't usually incorporate its own side-effects into the constructed memories. "Zeera, this rough neighborhood of yours — where was it?"

"All over," said Kardeni. "We kept moving around."

"Planet?"

"Liron-2, mostly."

"Oh, Liron-2!" the Doctor's face lit up. "I've been there. Lovely place. Very suburban and collegial. Where did you live?"

"All over," said Kardeni. "We never stayed in the same neighborhood for long. When I was nine, we lived in Varhopman, around Emmer street and Page."

The Doctor began drawing a map of the city of Varhopman in front of him. "Emmer street and..." He paused. Looked back at Kardeni. "That's the nice part of town."

Kardeni shrugged.

"And you say that everyone you knew around there was routinely shot, beat up, or burgled?" The Doctor scratched his head. "And you were institutionalized? And your father was kidnapped and tortured?" The Doctor began pacing up and down. "That's odd. No. Not just odd. That doesn't make sense." He clasped his hands behind his back, head bent. "That doesn't make one tiny little bit of sense at..."

He trailed off, as he realized that Seo was standing beside them, arms akimbo, glaring at them.

"You're talking about me, aren't you?" Seo demanded. "Specifically talking about me, specifically in a language I can't understand."

"In a language you can't understand?" Kardeni asked. "I don't..." Then, as if realizing, she clapped her hands to her mouth. "Oh, God. I didn't even... How long have I been speaking it?"

"Minute or two," the Doctor said. "I flipped you into it." He winked at her. "You realize you speak Gallifreyan like a native, right? And with a rather distinctive accent from the eastern mountains area — a bit south of where I grew up."

The hidden base shook with the noise from a nearby explosion, and they all found themselves thrown to the floor. A broken red light behind them began blinking.

"What was that?" Seo asked, picking herself up from the floor.

The Doctor jumped to his feet. "No clue. Probably something bad." He brought out his sonic screwdriver and buzzed it at the nearby burnt-out machinery, trying to coax it back to life. "Any ideas, Zeera? You were in this battle. What did they drop?"

"I promise you, I wasn't," Kardeni insisted, but came over and tried to help him fix the equipment, anyways. She swore beneath her breath softly, as she failed to produce any results. "I've got no clue how any of this is supposed to work." Then, wryly, "Told you I wasn't a Time Lord."

The Doctor checked the readings on his sonic screwdriver. "What?" Hit it. "No, no. Make sense!" Pointed it at the machine again. "Nothing!" Checked his sonic. "What? No! Stop saying that! Why is...?"

He stopped.

Looked up at Seo, who was standing next to the little red light, looking on at them and stifling laughter.

The Doctor sighed and dropped the sonic to his side. "There isn't actually any machinery, is there? As far as you can see, we're just rearranging the wall coverings."

Seo beamed.

"Is anything here real?" the Doctor asked.

Seo flicked the little red light, which bobbled to and fro. "Yep." She leaned down, pressing her ear against it. "And there are voices coming out of it. I can barely hear them." She screwed up her face and closed her eyes, concentrating. "I think it's Jenny!"


	37. Chapter 37

"I said, 'We made it through the access point and found the console room of the Battle TARDIS'," Jenny shouted into the central console. "What do we do now? How do we get you out?"

No answer.

Jenny pressed another button, which blew up that one holographic screen and dragged it into the center of the room. Beside it, other views of the world popped up in smaller boxes.

"Great! So now, we can see them," Jenny grumbled, poking at buttons on the console, "but we can't hear them. So we don't know if they can hear us, or what they're telling us." She leaned down, and shouted, "Seo, tell Dad that we can't hear whatever he's saying right now, but we're working on it!" She frantically began pressing a different set of buttons.

On the screen, Kardeni reached out and touched the red light.

Yimi suddenly screamed, clutching her head and doubling up. "Too much! Too much!"

On the screen, Kardeni jerked her hand away, stumbling backwards, not sure what had just happened. The Doctor began talking to her very excitedly, waving his arms around like he'd just made a huge discovery.

"What...? How...?" Jenny looked between the screen and Yimi. Her eyes lit up. "You're the only one who isn't affected by the Apos'alu, when she takes over the telepathic circuits." She grabbed Yimi by the shoulders. "I _thought_ Zeera had a connection with this TARDIS. It must be compartmentalizing the section of its telepathic circuits that communicate with Zeera, to stop the Apos'alu from taking _her_ over. And since you're the only one who doesn't pick up the Apos'alu, the TARDIS directed her thoughts straight into your head!"

Yimi took in a deep breath, as she recovered. She shuddered. "I never want to do that again."

"Sorry, but you're going to have to." Jenny yanked Yimi to her feet and dragged her back to the central console. "Dad built this place, and Zeera rebuilt it. So they're the only two people who know how to save everyone and stop the Apos'alu. We have to find a way to communicate."

On the screen, the Doctor was similarly pushing Kardeni back towards the blinking red light, explaining — Jenny was guessing — much the same thing.

Tentatively, both Yimi and Kardeni reached out their hands.

The moment Kardeni touched the light and Yimi touched the console, they fell silent, their eyes closing as they concentrated. Yimi winced in pain every so often, but did her best to hide it.

"What are they saying?" Jenny asked.

Yimi winced again. "She's... clearer now. She says the Doctor is helping her to control her thoughts so they don't hurt me." She opened her eyes, staring at the screen. "She's right. Seo really does look upset." She shook her head. "Why? I barely know her. Why does she care?"

"Knowing my sister," Jenny muttered, "it probably never occurred to her that she shouldn't."

Yimi seemed rather taken by this.

"That actually wasn't meant as a compliment to her," Jenny put in. "It's a really big problem because... Oh, never mind." She stepped forwards, studying the screens. "Tell the others that we're in the Battle TARDIS' console room." Her eyes shifted to the other exterior shots of the world that the Doctor, Kardeni, and Seo were currently inhabiting. "Tell them that outside, there's a whole flock of those fire-birds flying around, tearing apart anything they can find. Ask them what we should do."

Yimi closed her eyes again. For a few long moments, she was silent.

Then, silently, she nodded. Opened her eyes, scanning them across the console. Then across the row behind it. Then the row behind that one.

Her eyes landed on a blue lever at the back of the third extension of consoles — and she leapt at it. Yanked it down, then adjusted a small knob on the side.

"...that the fire-birds are ascending through the dimensions of the vault," Kardeni's voice suddenly said, blaring through the speakers in the console room. "Oh... wait. I think that worked. I think they can hear us."

"Oh, splendid!" The Doctor waved. "Hello up there! Glad to see you're..."

Seo practically shoved the Doctor out of the way. "Yimi, are you okay? I heard a scream!"

"I'm fine," said Yimi — and as she said it, they could hear the echo of her words far louder on the screen in front of them. Then, rather icily, added, "I... would appreciate it if Zeera could please disconnect from my mind, now."

Kardeni let go of the light abruptly, and Yimi breathed a sigh of relief. She stepped away from the central console, her eyes fixed on the image of Kardeni — eyes that filled with a cold fury and an overwhelming disgust.

"I... never thought..." Kardeni swallowed hard. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean..."

"You're a monster," Yimi said to her, pointedly. "Your mind's made that very clear." She turned away. "Anything I do for you, I do to save my people and help the Doctor regain his friend. If it weren't for that — I'd leave you to rot in there."

Jenny grimaced. "You read a lot more of her mind than she expected, huh?"

"I read enough," Yimi said. She crossed her arms. "Let's just get on with this."

"Yes! Excellent idea! Plenty of time for recriminations later," the Doctor decided. "Right. Jenny, I take it you're up to speed on what's going on?"

"More or less," Jenny confirmed. She skimmed her eyes across the remainder of the holographic screens on the edge of the room, watching as Seo appeared in more and more of them — usually batting off or being attacked by the fiery-bird things. "I'm kind of worried about the whole Seo-splitting-apart thing. How do I get you out of there?"

Seo muttered something about how being paper was rubbish.

"Ah — you don't," the Doctor explained. He gestured around himself. "Seo can't leave at the moment, and I have a feeling I'll be needing Zeera in here with us for the next part to work." He clasped his hands behind his back. "Thing is, regardless of the veracity of Mutajar's initial story, I'd say it's fairly clear that, as of right now, the Apos'alu really _is_ in a human body."

"But she said your prison didn't think she was human," Yimi pointed out.

"Because Biv was a bit clever about that one," the Doctor said. "If it weren't for my TARDIS, she probably wouldn't have been able to get out at all. Ever. It's the same sort of thing I imagine that," he turned to Kardeni, "you encounter, whenever you try to go into the vault. It's hard to get you back out again." He grinned. "Am I right?"

Kardeni seemed surprised. "But how did you...?" She stopped herself, and decided to drop it. "Yes. It is. I got stuck in there for 12 hours once. They had to reprogram half the systems to get me back."

"My point," the Doctor continued, "is that the Apos'alu is in a human body. That means that until she manages to get used to human telepathy — she'll have a lot more trouble controlling her swarm when they finally claw their way to the surface of Galia-4. They'll emerge all across the planet, and she'll need to use something like two TARDIS' worth of telepathic circuits to gather them all together and get them back under her control."

Jenny pressed a few buttons and squinted at the scanner display. "Based on the data up here and my own experience with the Apos'alu's form of mind control, I'm going to say that's probably right."

"Of course it's right! I'm very clever." The Doctor adjusted his bow tie, grinning. "Which means, Jenny — I have two asks of you. First, I need you to get us from this locked-down dimension into the chameleon arch room."

Jenny grimaced. "Right..."

"And then," the Doctor said, "I need you to do something very, _very_ important."


	38. Chapter 38

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> REALLY long chapter today. Basically, the first scene couldn't stand alone, and I just didn't have the heart to split up the second scene.
> 
> I wrote the second scene in so many different ways. I tried every variant. Every deviation. There was one version that I was really sad to part with, because it was basically just the Doctor and Seo riffing off each other and it was so funny! But also ridiculously slow. So that one got the axe. Most of the alternate versions of this scene didn't work because if a certain set of things happen, it cascades and eventually, the Doctor just stops the whole story from progressing. This sounds like I'm being silly, but I'm not. It got extremely frustrating.
> 
> But I spent ages on every scene with the Doctor and Kardeni together.
> 
> In personal news, I'm feeling a little better but still kind of under the weather. Sorry that this makes me a little unreliable.

Devin was still pissed off that he couldn't get back his arrows or his crashed plane. But whatever. He was so gonna have the coolest story when he got back to college. His friends were going to be like, "Dude, nice." And he was going to be all like, "I know, right? Hand me a beer." And then Lindsey from down the hall would hand it to him, because Lindsey was hot. And he'd be like, "Maybe we could do the next protest together," and she'd be all like, "Oh, Devin, I thought you'd never ask!"

And then she'd kiss him and he'd take off her...

"Yeah — I'm gonna say there's a 99% chance that none of that will ever happen," said Tom, as he and Haley ran out of the Main Complex beside Devin. "Like... ever."

"And since when were _you_ the hero of this story?" Haley demanded. "As far as I could tell, you were just huddling in a corner, sobbing and babbling about some Apo-dapo thing, when we found you and rescued you." She looked back over her shoulder and shuddered. "I dunno — you go back in time to help out a coworker and take some measurements on radioactive mutant super-kelp, and next thing you know, species that never should have existed are swarming the Main Complex and everyone else has turned into brainwashed zombies."

"Yeah," said Devin, still engrossed in his fantasy. "It's going to be awesome."

"I'm starting to wonder why we decided to rescue him in the first place," Haley complained. "The guy's delusional. Where's that other protester? What was her name? Jenny! We should have ditched this guy and saved her."

"That's the one I was _trying_ to save," Tom replied. "I couldn't find her." He shuddered, as he passed a line of winged frogs staring at him with glassy-eyed malevolence. "Doesn't matter. Important thing is, this protester's got a ship hidden somewhere in the underbrush of this planet. And since everything in the Main Complex is on lockdown, the only chance we've got is to..."

"Faye!" Haley grabbed Tom by the arm and dragged him to the right. "Tom, look! It's Faye! She must have been out of time when everything started, too." She waved her hand through the air, calling out, "Faye! Over here! We've got a way off-world!"

Faye Mutajar, who had been standing beside an incongruous-looking blue box with her arms extended and her eyes closed, suddenly snapped her eyes open and leveled a piercing stare at Haley.

Haley slowed. A shudder came over her.

For the first time, she noticed the swarm of flaming-feathered sort-of-birds surrounding Mutajar and the blue box. And she started to think that maybe... just maybe... this was a really bad idea.

Tom grabbed Haley and dragged her away. "Leave her, Hal!"

"It got her, too," Haley said, turning. "I can't believe..."

"Stop them," Mutajar commanded in a calm yet chilling voice.

The next thing Tom and Haley knew, they were surrounded by the flame-feathered birds, their skin burned by the flames and scratched by the talons. They screamed and struggled, but couldn't break free. Through the flutter of feathers and their own screams, they could just faintly hear Devin — the protester they'd rescued — asking Mutajar, "Did I do right, oh holy Apos'alu, by bringing you the dissidents?"

"Yes — I think I've finally figured out why it didn't work on them," Mutajar said. She gave a frustrated sigh. "These human bodies really are difficult, aren't they?" To her swarm, "Bring me their brains when you're done with them. I want to make doubly sure this kind of thing never happens again."

"But... but... you were our friend!" Tom shouted. "Why are you...?"

"Friend?" Mutajar said the word as if it disgusted her. "Do you know how long I watched you two laughing and chatting as you ran through my prison cell? You want to feel what it's like, having someone rub their happiness and freedom in your face, while you can't move?" To her swarm, she added, "Kill them extra slowly. I want them to feel it." She glanced at Devin. "Then kill him."

A group of birds suddenly swarmed Devin. He yelped, struggling to break free.

"But... but I did what you wanted!" Devin whimpered. "I was your obedient servant!"

"And some day," Mutajar said, "when I'm finally able to shed this hateful human form, I will gain the power to turn all my most loyal followers into my swarm. But not today." To her swarm, "Kill him quickly. He's earned it."

All across the planet, the swarm began to hear the screams of the dying. As they crawled up out of the vault and through the metamorphic rock layer all across the planet, they heeded that scream as a signal.

The Apos'alu had returned — angrier and more determined than ever before.

Their ultimate vengeance was about to begin again.

* * *

"It's not hurting Yimi, right?" Seo asked, as they slowly crept forwards to the edge of the battlefield, hidden from view by a pile of rubble that used to be a building. She glanced at Kardeni, nervously. "I still think _I_ should have been the one to do the link-thing. For Yimi's sake."

The Doctor put a hand around Kardeni's shoulders. "You couldn't. Zeera's the only one who can hold down a telepathic link with Yimi — because she's the one connected to the Battle TARDIS. And I think she's doing just fine." He leaned down towards Kardeni, and asked, "You all right?"

"Go straight," Kardeni muttered, hand to her head, listening through the link. "The dimension keeps warping right now, for some reason. Yimi says..."

A TARDIS slammed out of the vortex, flames leaping off its sides as it careened through the air and crashed into the planet, showering the trio with mud and debris. A troop of Daleks immediately descended upon it, prying it open like a tuna fish can and flying inside, chanting, "EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!"

Screams echoed across the battlefield.

Kardeni doubled over, screaming with them, hands clutching her head.

"What's...?" Seo asked.

"Don't know — some sort of psychic attack." The Doctor buzzed Kardeni's head with his sonic screwdriver. "Good news: I've cut the link with Yimi. So your friend's fine. Bad news: we are now stranded on a replicated Time War battlefield with absolutely no idea where we're going." He leaned down. "Zeera, can...?"

"Bivazeer!" someone screamed.

They looked up. One Time Lord had climbed out of the TARDIS and was sprinting towards Kardeni. "They've got us surrounded, Biv! They're everywhere!" He reached out to her, and she shuddered back. "Please! I'm so scared. Please...!"

His skeleton flashed under the blaze of a Dalek blast and he fell to the ground, his hand still extended towards her.

The Doctor shoved a hand over her eyes. "Don't look." To Seo, he said, "Get us out of here."

Seo nodded and gestured for them to move, zigzagging them across the battlefield and towards another pile of rubble up ahead. A Dalek shot barely missed them as they dove behind it.

"Sorry," Seo whispered. "That one's paper gun uncrumpled faster than I expected."

Time Lords were now flocking out of the TARDIS, screaming, "Biv! Help us! Bivazeer! Please!"

The air tore apart over the battlefield, and — with a screeching cry — the Apos'alu's swarm tore out of it, descending upon Dalek and Time Lord alike, tearing them apart and boiling their brains inside their heads. Little black blobs rose up around them and devoured what was left.

The Doctor grabbed Kardeni and shoved her down. "Don't look. Really. Just... don't look." He was trying not to look himself. He knew he was trembling almost as badly as she was.

"Does she know them?" Seo asked.

The Doctor closed his eyes. "Biv would. I definitely do. But Zeera..." He opened them and looked down at Kardeni. "I don't know. Do you?"

"I don't know anyone," Kardeni insisted. "I shouldn't be here. But why...?" She cried out and doubled over again, clutching her head, in clear and obvious pain. "Why does it hurt so much when they die?"

The Doctor leaned over her. Scanned her with the sonic again. "Stupid, stupid Doctor!" Hit himself on the head. "She was medicated for years! Her link with the TARDIS shut down. Neither of them ever healed from this. Zeera blocked it out. The TARDIS..."

"Vented it inwards," Seo realized. "To Yimi's people. That's why they're so bloodthirsty."

"And now, the Apos'alu is forcing them _both_ to relive it," the Doctor said, his eyes growing dark and stormy. "This isn't a psychic attack. It's the TARDIS! She doesn't remember them. The TARDIS does. They're each fueling each other's pain and confusion. It's going to keep building and building until it drives them both mad. And I don't know how to stop it."

"Just tell Zeera to try to destroy the multiverse," Seo chimed in. "That usually works for me."

The Doctor blinked. Stared at her. "What?"

"Or she could turn everyone into Cybermen!" Seo continued. "Or force people to worship her by threatening to tear out their eyeballs and..."

"You're purposely annoying me to make me less upset, aren't you?" the Doctor said. He sighed, then grabbed her into a hug. "You're a rubbish companion. You know that?"

Seo beamed.

A blast ripped out across the battlefield as the crashed TARDIS blew apart. The Apos'alu's swarm gave a laugh that sounded like nails on a chalk board as they descended upon the ruins, slaughtering everyone left alive. Each reached out to Zeera, begging for help, screaming...

"No," Kardeni told herself, squeezing her eyes shut. "Focus, Zeera. Focus. Find the intersection point..." She shoved herself away from the Doctor and raced out into the open. "Andrew. He's still in here. I have to rescue...!"

The Doctor jumped up, grabbed her and yanked her away as the ground blew up where she'd just been. He shielded her from the debris and mud, and Seo darted in and led them away to a new hiding spot.

"What's wrong with her?" Seo asked, struggling to restrain her. "Doesn't she realize this whole place can kill her?"

"She's being clever," the Doctor realized, as something lit up in his eyes. "She's finding something common to herself and the TARDIS. Something they can latch onto, to calm them both down. Give them both purpose." He leaned in towards her, hands on her shoulders. "Focus on that, Zeera. Focus on..." He frowned, glanced over at Seo, and mouthed, 'Who's Andrew?'

Seo mimed herself getting shot in the chest.

The Doctor's eyes went wide. "Right. Well. This'll be interesting." He rubbed his hands together. "So. Andrew Lantro. Intersection of you and the TARDIS. Well, of course he is. Not just because he's the one who found it. But because he was the first one who worked out who and what you were. And you thought it was a joke."

Kardeni curled up into herself, hands still pressed against her head, whimpering.

"No," the Doctor realized. "It's more than that. It really _was_ a joke at first, wasn't it? You enjoyed studying Time Lords. He used to joke with you and pretend you were one. And then, one day, there was a guest lecture — something that mentioned a chameleon arch."

"Professor Denoring," Kardeni squeaked.

"Professor...!" The Doctor paused. Scratched his head. "Denoring. Denoring. Denoring. I've heard that name before. Where have I heard that name before?" He pointed at Kardeni. "Didn't he disappear mysteriously or something?"

Kardeni winced in pain, but shook her head.

"Oh well, must be thinking of someone else," the Doctor muttered.

"Excavation of the Valor of Carflonum," said Kardeni, finally managing to sit upright. "That's what he's famous for. But he didn't want to talk about that. He um..." She glanced at the battlefield, then felt a stabbing pain in her head and squeezed her eyes shut. "He theorized the existence of a chameleon arch. No one believed him. It was the thing that he was most irritated about — that he couldn't prove the existence or use of the chameleon..." She gasped in horror as a Time Lord bursting with gold light staggered towards her, screaming, regenerating over and over again as he cried for her to help him.

The Doctor grabbed her by the chin and directed her to look at him. "No one believed him. Especially not Andrew Lantro," he guessed. "So when Professor Denoring asked for questions, Lantro asked if you were a Time Lord, didn't he? Just as a joke. Just to be funny."

Kardeni opened her mouth to answer, but shrieked as a stray gun blast from a Dalek barely missed their hiding spot.

The Doctor shushed her and pulled her closer, and they waited as a Dalek approached, looked around, then left.

"It was... actually really funny at the time," Kardeni whispered. She gave a slightly terrified smile. Flicked her eyes over to the battlefield and shuddered, squeezing them shut. "Professor Denoring didn't like being laughed at much. He took it seriously and made me go up to the lectern and gave me a 'test'."

Now the Doctor was intrigued. "What test?"

"Time Lord questions," said Kardeni. "Things like 'where was the Rod of Rassilon kept?' or 'what are the colors of the Prydonian chapter seals?' I knew I wasn't a Time Lord, so I just took it as a challenge. See how much I knew. Andrew kept cracking jokes in the middle and everyone was..."

She gave a cry of alarm as a blood-strewn man stumbled towards them, his whole timeline coming unraveled with every step. His body twisted and contorted, morphed and changed, dust and sand whipping around him.

He held out a hand. "Biv, please! Please, help...!"

Then he screamed as he began to crumble apart in front of them.

"Move, move, move!" the Doctor shouted at Seo, grabbing Kardeni under an arm and bolting out of their cover. Seo quickly raced ahead of him, taking the lead and finding them a new hiding spot in the destroyed remains of a house.

Seo looked between Kardeni and the Time Lord crumbling to dust. "Who...?"

"Someone Biv and I both knew very well," the Doctor said. He leaned down, taking Kardeni by the shoulders. "Focus on the story, Zeera. Time Lord quiz. Splendid stuff! Always love a good quiz. Lantro was cracking jokes. Everyone was laughing. But somehow, you knew all the answers, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"Right away," the Doctor continued. "Easily. Without hesitation."

"Yes."

"And Lantro stopped cracking jokes," the Doctor said. "And everyone stopped laughing."

"It got so quiet. Like everyone was holding their breaths." Kardeni sucked in a sharp breath. "I started getting really nervous. For a while, I thought maybe I _was_..." She forced a nervous and slightly terrified laugh. "But no. No, it was all a mistake. That's what Professor Denoring said. He said I'd just proven I wasn't a Time Lord! Completely human. Always have been."

The Doctor seemed surprised. "He did? After you got all the answers right?"

" _Because_ I got them right," said Kardeni, voice still shaking. "A chameleon arch is supposed to be used to hide. No Time Lord in their right mind would ever become me. I know too much."

"Yes, that's been bothering me too," the Doctor muttered. To Kardeni, "Did you ever see Professor Denoring after that, or did he mysteriously...?"

"Oh, I ran into him _a lot_ after that," Kardeni confirmed. "Really a lot. At least weekly. Daily, sometimes. Usually in completely unexpected places. We used to laugh and say, 'you're here too! Small universe!'" She shrugged. "Eventually, he became my graduate advisor."

"I see," the Doctor muttered. He wasn't liking this much. "And what happened to him in the end?"

"I don't know," said Kardeni. "I had to drop out of school when Craig got sick. The last time I saw Professor Denoring was when I was going to get my stuff and say goodbye. Andrew came with me. That was a mistake. Next thing I knew, I'd been knocked unconscious and wound up waking up in some kind of operating arena, strapped down to a table and surrounded by a whole bunch of terrifying-looking machines full of knives and blades, and Andrew's leaning over me going, 'Surprise! Aren't you glad you're not a Time Lord now? Because this is what Denoring would probably have done to you!'" She made a face. "I told him that joke was in very poor taste."

"Joke," the Doctor muttered.

"Andrew always does needlessly elaborate jokes like that," said Kardeni. "Professor Denoring hated it too, of course. When I said goodbye, he was too busy glaring knives at Andrew to say goodbye back."

"What did he say instead?" the Doctor asked. "Something like 'You'll be back'?"

Kardeni shrugged. "I don't remember. I just remember feeling really woozy from whatever had knocked me out, and that Andrew wouldn't leave my side for the rest of the day."

"I can imagine," the Doctor said. "And that was the last time you saw Professor Denoring. Of course." He took out his sonic screwdriver, adjusting the settings. "You say Lantro does these little 'jokes' a lot?"

Kardeni nodded. She was grinning from ear to ear now, tuning out the battlefield completely. "He turned my office into a toy railway once. He made little mini mountains with mini-goats on the filing cabinets, little mini people that'd get onboard and off, and a little puff of steam in the shape of a smiley face." She put her hands to her heart. "And then there was my birthday, when he transformed the whole..." She stopped herself, her happiness faltering. "Doctor — where _is_ Andrew?"

"At the moment," the Doctor dismissed, buzzing his sonic at her, "not on my priority list." He checked the readings. "First comes you. Then the evil killy space monster. Then... aha!" He grinned and waved the sonic at her. "TARDIS panic quelled. Psychic attack fully gone. Perfect. Which means I need you..." He buzzed the sonic at her head, "to contact Yimi, so she can tell us where we're supposed to go."

Kardeni looked deep into his eyes, trying to find answers. Then, finally, she nodded, put her hand to her head and closed her eyes, accessing Yimi's mind through the link. She concentrated for a second or two. "The dimension seems to have stabilized a lot, actually. They know where we need to go." She pointed to the right. "There. This dimension sort of twists around a little. At the end, there's a wall made out of the linking rock..."

"You mean that metamorphic stuff that bounces us from place to place?" The Doctor clapped his hands. "Splendid! And that'll get us there?"

Kardeni nodded. "With a little help from Seo and the thing in..." She paused. Frowned. "My pocket?" She reached into her pocket, and brought out a small black disk. She turned it over in her hands. "I found this earlier. I still don't know what it is or how it got there."

The Doctor plucked it out of her hands. "Aha!" He began to scan it over with his sonic screwdriver. "At a guess, I'd say Mutajar slipped it into your pocket so she could drag you into the vault when she found the fob watch — or when she didn't need you anymore, whichever came first." He turned around. "Well, Seo, how about we...?"

Seo wasn't there.

"Of course she isn't," the Doctor muttered, trying to look around for her. "Rule number one, Seo! Rule number one." He spotted her in the distance. Gestured for Kardeni to follow him. "Keep down. Stay quiet. Anything out here can kill you."

They snuck their way over to a mud pile a short ways away, where Seo was excitedly talking to an old man with sad eyes and a scraggly white beard. He looked war-weary and tired, but still determined to do what he had to.

"Hello!" Seo told the Doctor, beaming. "I found your First-Ghost!" She gestured at the war-weary man. "He was coming over to torment you, but I told him you were too busy for a guilt trip." She clasped her hands behind her back. "But I said I'm not busy at all! So how about he torment _me_ , instead?" She bounced on her toes. "It's been a lot of fun. Like a counseling session! But with more hugs."

"She might be the most irritatingly cheerful person I've ever met," the War Doctor muttered. Then, putting an arm on her shoulder, added, "She's starting to grow on me."

"She does that." The Doctor turned to Seo. "We're looking for a twisty bit of the dimension that leads to that metamorphic linking rock. Any sign of it?"

"Oh, I know where that is!" Seo ran off to the left. "Follow me!"

As they passed the War Doctor, he placed a hand on Kardeni's shoulder, and it was like she was transported to a long, winding corridor of a ship, the Doctor in front of her, the light of a teleport just beginning to illuminate around him. Something seared through her. She fell to the ground — right in front of him.

And the Doctor closed his eyes, turned, and left her behind.

As the Daleks closed in around her, with their torture implements and their grating voices and their hateful eyestalks...

Kardeni jumped as she realized someone had placed a hand on her back. She spun around and saw the Doctor — with his youthful face and floppy hair and big chin. He was giving her the strangest look.

"Are you all right?" he asked her.

"Fine," said Kardeni. "Fine." She fixed her eyes ahead of her and forced herself to focus on the task ahead. Beneath her breath, inaudible to the Doctor, she muttered, "Just learning why you really want to help Bivazeer. That's all."


	39. Chapter 39

With a buzz and a flash and a zap — they all tumbled into the chameleon arch room. The Doctor looked up, jumped to his feet with a grin... then froze. The grin faltered and died.

"Ah." The Doctor ran over to it, buzzing it with his sonic screwdriver.

"I told you it was broken, back when you outlined the plan to Jenny," Kardeni said, getting up and walking over. She stopped by the side of the chair, watching the Doctor's face get more and more troubled. "I'm sorry, Doctor. I know why you're really here. But you've got to accept it. I didn't know anyone on that battlefield. I only felt something because the TARDIS panicked inside my head." She put a hand on his arm. "I'm not Bivazeer. Not a Time Lord. Not your friend." Let him go and stepped back. "Just a normal human."

The Doctor, for a moment, just looked very sad.

Then pushed his sadness aside and raced over to the slot for the fob watches. "Actually, believe it or not, coming here had nothing to do with you." Buzzed it with his sonic. Checked the readings. And sighed. "Right. So much for that part of the plan. The watch-writer's kaput. Burned out."

"Before it's last use?" Seo asked, coming over. "Or after?"

"Don't know," said the Doctor, taking off a panel and analyzing the wiring. "Someone else has been mucking about in here. I can't tell." Poked around a bit, causing a spark. "At any rate, we can't use it. Unfortunate, since the plan sort of banked on..." He paused. Stroked his chin. Then spun on his heel, turning on Kardeni. "Does your Battle TARDIS have a Re-Partitioner?"

Kardeni frowned. "A what?"

The Doctor described the tool to her and what it did.

Kardeni laughed. "Oh, that! I didn't know what it was. It's in the toolkit. Fourth console, third drawer on the left."

The Doctor stepped towards her, his hands on her shoulders. "Then I'm going to have to ask a favor of you. And I'm sorry. I'm very, very sorry. But you're not going to like it."

* * *

"The plan's changed?" Jenny asked.

Yimi was already rooting around underneath the 4th console. "There was a problem with the chameleon arch. The Doctor says we have to do something about a tablecloth."

"Tablecloth?" Jenny rushed over and helped Yimi beneath the console. Yimi described the new plan as, together, they lugged out a huge toolbox, and carried it over towards the central console.

They crashed it down a short ways away.

"Okay, tablecloth," Jenny confirmed, wiping some sweat from her forehead. "Well, it's a lot more work for us than the previous plan. Zeera _agreed_ to this?"

"She..." Yimi trailed off. "I can see in her mind how strongly she wants to say no. But she still said yes." She shook her head. "How is that possible?"

"She feels badly about what she did, Yimi," Jenny offered. "This is your proof." She headed over to the central console. "Come on. We better get started. This is going to be tricky."

* * *

The Doctor kept going over the chameleon arch again and again, opening up all the panels and scanning the insides with his sonic — then checking the readings, shaking his head, and muttering beneath his breath.

Finally, he stepped away.

"How bad is it?" Kardeni asked.

"Fixable for our purposes," said the Doctor. He rolled up his sleeves. "But I have no idea what damage was caused by Lantro messing about in there, versus what was caused during the final transfer." He ducked under the chair, buzzing things with his sonic screwdriver. He paused. Frowned. "Oh, hello. What's this?" He squinted. "Biodata reader." Poked it. "Wonder whose biodata might activate...?"

An image of a young man suddenly appeared in the room with them. He looked so real, Seo actually had to try to touch him, just to make sure he wasn't.

"Ah. Mine." The Doctor scooted out from under the chameleon arch and jumped to his feet. He looked at the person in front of them, giving a sad sigh. "Bivazeer. Of course." He glanced over at Kardeni. "From the look on your face, I'm guessing he looks a bit familiar."

"He...! I...! Shut up," Kardeni said, her voice quivering. "That doesn't prove anything."

The man in front of them waved. "Doctor," he announced, then — with a mischievous grin — added, "and yes, I did just call you that to drive you crazy. I won't salute or call you sir, though, because I'm pretty sure you'd get the Time Lords to resurrect me just so you could punch me in the face." He shoved his hands behind his back, and gave a sad little shrug. "So, you've probably guessed by now — if you're getting this, it means I'm dead. I tried to leave it for you in a more obvious spot, but I kind of got... stuck here, in the end."

"Ah," the Doctor muttered.

"It's a long story, and I won't bore you with the details," Bivazeer continued. "Let's just say that I knew the Daleks wouldn't kill me until they drilled that encryption code out of my head. So... yeah. When you got away, I was taken prisoner." He sucked in a deep, painful breath, as if suppressing a whole chunk of memories of what the Daleks had done to him. "I escaped, of course. And then — I stumbled across proof. Rassilon _did_ force the Apos'alu into existence. It _wasn't_ an accident. I knew I needed to expose the truth, so I came back here." He gestured at the chameleon arch. "And found the Apos'alu trying to use the chameleon arch to put itself back together and escape."

"First true thing Lantro ever said," the Doctor muttered.

"Well, I stopped the Apos'alu mid-transfer," said Bivazeer. "Completely destroyed the machine. Problem is — now, the Apos'alu is a non-corporeal ghost desperate for a body, and here I am, a Time Lord body ready for the taking. I can't let her get her hands on that." Bivazeer shrugged. "So this is it for me. I'm overloading the chameleon arch and then using it on myself. That'll tear my body to shreds for sure. No regeneration. No chances for the Apos'alu to get her hands on a Time Lord body or the encryption key in my mind." He gave a sad laugh. "Funny, isn't it, how you always told me you were ready to die — and here I am, forced to do it instead? Guess that's how life works out." He snapped his feet together, and saluted. "So, for the last time, this is Private Bivazeer, signing out." Then he cursed beneath his breath. "I told myself I wasn't going to salute. He's going to kill me for..."

The message blinked off, as it ended.

"So he _did_ use the chameleon arch?" Seo asked.

The Doctor gave a long, slow sigh. "Yes. Well, sort of." He ran his hands down his face. "Questions, questions, it all just leads to more questions!" He stared at Kardeni, again — for a long, long moment. Then, finally, he shook his head and turned back to the chair. "No. Don't have time to work it out. I need to fix this before the Apos'alu finishes gathering her swarm and they leave the surface of Galia-4."

Seo bounced over. "What can I do?"

"Stand there and don't blow anything up," the Doctor told her, as he started, slowly but surely, to fix it.

Seo pouted. "But I can...!"

She stopped, as she caught something out of the corner of her eye. Turned, peering at it.

"Hold that thought," Seo instructed them all, racing to the far corner of the room.

The Doctor, still working on the chair, warned, "Seo, really, don't..."

"Leave this to me," Kardeni said, racing after Seo. "Eight kids. Remember?" She gestured at the Doctor. "You keep doing whatever you're doing."

He sighed, but got back to work.


	40. Chapter 40

Seo was already at the far side of the room, pacing in front of the wall, staring at it from different angles — walking close to it, then jumping back further, crouching low then jumping high. Even tried to cross her eyes.

"What...?" Kardeni began.

Seo's eyes lit up, and she ran over. "There! Right there!" She thudded a fist down on a section of the wall, and the room rumbled. A series of clicks and groans and mechanical whines surrounded them, as a quarter of the wall in front of them slowly turned and folded outwards, revealing a dark, hidden alcove.

The lights clicked on inside the alcove.

Seo ran inside, staring in wonder at something that looked almost like a crystal city, splayed out before them — except every building and tower was connected. Beautiful, glistening spires of not-quite-glass held a flowing supply of not-quite-water, which was — in different areas — flowing, dripping, boiling, and condensing.

"What is this thing?" Seo asked.

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder, catching a glimpse. "Human technology." He returned to his work on the chair. "A system that's a good half-century out of date."

Kardeni stepped inside. "It's a Mark 12." She squatted down beside one of the towers, squinting at it. "Mr. Hoyer used to use them all the time, when we first started. But we decided it'd be more secure to get rid of the old systems and store all our data in the Battle TARDIS." She pinged it with her fingernail. "I don't know why this is still here."

"But what is it?" Seo said, crossing her arms.

"Nearest analogy to your world," the Doctor said, climbing on top of the chair and yanking off the top, "it's a secure server. Very secure. Popular with government folks, spies, and — of course — criminals." He pointed the sonic screwdriver over his shoulder and buzzed it at the machine. "Supposedly hack-proof. Well, unless you're me."

The liquid inside the machine changed color, suddenly rushing through the small crystal city at twice the speed. Boiling areas changed to cooling areas. Condensation areas turned into mini-whirlpools. Flashes of light began to appear inside the liquid, more and more frequently, and then a series of holographic bricks appeared on the floor around them.

"How did you...?" Kardeni asked.

The Doctor stuck the sonic between his teeth and shoved his hands into the interior of the chair, adjusting the internal mechanisms. "Flubum huffun whuffum!"

Seo had clearly long-since decided to ignore him. She picked up one of the holographic bricks with her hands and stacked it on top of another one. The rest of the holographic bricks followed suit, flying through the air and assembling themselves into a pattern.

The bricks turned black and — superimposed — was the following message:

User Andrew Lantro authorized

Other User, Craig Kardeni, currently unavailable.

Continue erasing all data tagged Zeera? Y/N

"But that's..." Kardeni selected the 'No' option, then watched as the text swirled together and then exploded into an array of stars surrounding them. She began tapping on the stars, and each swelled beneath her hand into a full-fledged record. "But why would they...?"

Everything in the database was about Zeera Kardeni. Her birth certificate — a fake, the original supposedly 'misplaced'; transit records and school profiles — blanked or erased; census data hacked and altered. And scattered throughout were panicked messages, sent back and forth between Craig Kardeni and Andrew Lantro...

_"Holy shit. No one remembers a Zeera Stenner attending preschool where it says she did..."_

_"Just came back from Liron-2. Can't find any records of her before age 9. Then, suddenly, bang! Like she appeared out of nowhere."_

_"There's nothing. Everything's been doctored or altered or lost. I'm starting to think this crazy conspiracy theory might be right after all."_

Kardeni's eyes narrowed. "But this is absurd!" she shouted. "I remember growing up! I remember my sixth birthday, when my parents took me to the beach and a SeaBurc threw up on me. I remember sitting on the roof watching trans-temporal fireworks while eating a whole plate of stuffed teartaras when I was 8." She bunched her hands into fists. "I had a life before I was 9! I'm sure of it."

"Threw up on you?" The Doctor looked up. "Do you have a spring birthday?"

Kardeni nodded. "Why?"

"Oh, well, they do that in the spring," the Doctor said, getting back to his work. "Mum spent weeks trying to wash the smell out of my hair. Lovely beach the rest of the year, though." He buzzed at the chair with his sonic screwdriver. "They're not called SeaBurcs, by the way. Nor is that food called 'stuffed teartaras'. I can give you the recipe, if you're interested."

"That isn't funny," Kardeni said.

"I didn't mean it to be," the Doctor replied. He thumped his hand against the chair. "Memory implantation on this thing's almost non-functional. Most of your early memories are probably mostly intact. Few words switched round, here and there. Few faces altered. Most things unique to Gallifrey obfuscated or suppressed."

Kardeni turned around and glared at him. "I am not Bivazeer. I'm not your friend!"

"Do you remember looking into the untempered schism when you were eight?" the Doctor asked.

"No, I don't," said Kardeni, pointedly. "What even _is_ an untempered schism?"

"Big thing," the Doctor said. "Very bright. You can see the whole of time and space through it. Absolutely terrifying."

Kardeni hesitated, as a spark of terror ignited in her eyes.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. "Oh, well, that reaction's very telling. Isn't it, Zeera-Bev?"

"A vague, indistinct memory of something bright and scary?" Kardeni shook her head, incredulously. "My son Greg was in a school play when he was eight. He was blinded by the stage lights, forgot all his lines, and ran offstage in terror. Are you saying he's a Time Lord, too?"

"No," the Doctor said, shoving his sonic further down into the chair and buzzing it on a very low frequency. "And you're right — there are plenty of fireworks displays and weak-stomached birds all over the universe."

"Thank you!"

"It's just that," the Doctor went on, "when you combine it with your name, your ability to speak fluent Gallifreyan with a native Gallifreyan accent, your recognition of me, your ability to hear the TARDIS, your dreams, your reaction to Biv's real name, your inexplicable knowledge of Time War battlefields, your ability to ace Denoring's test without a sweat, and... I could go on like this all day." The Doctor buzzed at a different section of the chair. "Basically, you're batting a perfect 'Time Lord'."

Kardeni turned back to the data. "I'll prove I'm human!" She began tapping on things at random, searching for something. "Craig and Andrew will have spoken to Jules. He was at the hospital with my parents the day I was born."

"Jules?" Seo asked.

"The family friend I told you about," Kardeni said, still tapping at stars, "who took me in after my parents died." She grinned, as she found the star she wanted. "There. Jules conversation." Tapped on it.

The sound of a recorded call cut through the air around them.

_"...Jules," Lantro was saying. "And yes, he says he was there the day the Stenners' child was born. He can verify her existence."_

"Thank you!" Kardeni said.

_"Whose existence?" Craig's voice asked. "Zeera's or Ashley's?"_

_"Ashley's," Lantro said. "I asked about Zeera, and he said he didn't know what the deal was. As far as Jules is concerned, the Stenners left for Liron-2 with one child and came back with a different one. He asked the Stenners about it, but they never explained it satisfactorily. They just told him that, for Zeera's sake, he should pretend that Ashley never existed."_

_"And the psychiatric files?" Craig asked._

_"Disappeared." Lantro sighed. "Look, Craig, you're married to the woman. Has she ever mentioned an Ashley Victoria Stenner?"_

Kardeni's face went white. "Ashley...?" She shook her head. "No. No, they're mistaken. That doesn't make any sense."

_"No," Craig admitted. "It's fucking weird is what it is. Did you get the fob watch?"_

_"Jules didn't have it," Lantro said. "Said he'd never seen anything like it before. I checked all the places he thought her parents might have stashed it. Nothing."_

_Craig gave a long sigh. "It has to be somewhere, Andy! You proved that."_

_"You never miss a chance to remind me that this is all my fault, do you?" Lantro said, dully. He sighed. "Fine. Fine! I'll go back to Liron-2 this weekend. Look again."_

_"And if you see any Time Lords," Craig said, "remember..."_

_"...bullet through each heart," Lantro confirmed. "And don't stop shooting until they stop regenerating." There was the sound of a gun charging up in the background. "Oh, yeah. Trust me. I'm not letting anyone — Time Lord or otherwise — touch her again. One operating arena from hell was more than enough."_


	41. Chapter 41

"What is...?" Jenny asked, spinning around. She blinked. Put her hand to her head.

Yimi backed away, uneasily. "What's wrong?"

Jenny dropped her hand and waved it away. "Probably nothing." She leaned down and pulled at the grating of the TARDIS floor. "I put my psychic defenses up at full, ever since that last mental invasion. I think I keep rubbing elbows with the Battle TARDIS."

Yimi, still a bit warily, helped Jenny to lift the grating and move it to the side. It clanged as they dropped it.

"At least it means I'm not getting taken over by the Apos'alu anymore," Jenny said, grabbing a torch out of the toolkit. She pressed a button on the underside of the floor, and a ladder extended downwards. "Come on." She hopped onto the ladder and began to climb. "Let's see what we're dealing with."

A minute later, Jenny leapt off the ladder and onto the gantry, shining her torch around to examine the bowels of the ship. "Oh."

"What is...?" Yimi hopped down after her. Then frowned. "Oh." Stared at their surroundings. "Is it supposed to look like this?" She walked forwards and touched the hard white substance that was currently engulfing the coral.

"Not as far as I'm concerned." Jenny shone the torch in the other direction, but found more of the same. "What happened here? It's like someone encased this place in a bar of soap." She wrinkled her nose. "Except it smells like rot and grime." She walked a little further, then shook her head. "Yimi — if you've still got that link open with Zeera, can you tell Dad what we found down here?"

Yimi went silent, closing her eyes for a moment. Then shook her head. "It's no good. Whatever they're doing on their side, it's sent Zeera's mind into turmoil. I can't break through."

Jenny walked over to the hard white stuff, touching it. "It _really_ feels like soap." She tried to dig her fingernails into it. "Maybe we could scrape it...!" But it didn't scrape off. Didn't even scratch. "Oh well. Worth a shot."

Yimi peered into the darkness. "Wait." She ran further, gesturing for Jenny to follow her. "I see something!"

Jenny ran after her with a sigh, doing her best to redirect her torch in front of Yimi. Didn't she know how dangerous it could be down here? "Yimi, be careful..."

Yimi clambered down a set of steps in the gantry, and then spun around, her hands in the air. "See? It's different!"

Jenny rushed down the stairs after her... then slowed. Shone the torchlight around.

The coral was different, here. No soapy-looking substance. Instead, there was this brown, slimy stuff that glowed in the dark. It looked a bit like... kelp.

"Oh." Jenny slapped her head with her hand. "Oh, you are kidding me. It can't be the radioactive super-kelp. Tell me it's not the radioactive mutant super-kelp! That'd just be ridiculous!"

Yimi frowned. "Radioactive...?"

Jenny grabbed Yimi by the wrist. "Come on. We better get out of here." They began to run. "I don't have a Geiger counter on me, but I'm guessing that something called 'radioactive mutant super-kelp' is probably a bit radioactive."

Five minutes later, they were up top again, Jenny leaning over the central console and pouring over data about radioactive mutant super kelp.

Yimi took the pill that Jenny had given her. It tasted foul.

"You know, all the stuff Stenman-Hoyer is doing makes a _lot_ more sense when you read the secret files," Jenny said. She hacked her way into another database and kept reading. "Well, the good news is, it looks like both the soap and the radioactive mutant super-kelp were just the latest in a long line of experiments in which Stenman-Hoyer was trying to do exactly what Dad wanted the two of us to do — unground the ship. Granted, Stenman-Hoyer didn't actually succeed, yet." A small smile trickled up Jenny's face. "But _they_ were trying to get this ship to fly anywhere. And we only need it to go a very specific distance." She leapt into the air, excitedly. "Yes! Yes, that's it. Oh, I'm a genius!"

She spun around and dove for the toolkit, rummaging around and grabbing something.

"Two minutes!" Jenny called, climbing back down into the underbelly of the Battle TARDIS. "Then flip that green switch on the central console by the swivel screen." She leapt down onto the gantry, turning on her torch. "I've got a job to do."


	42. Chapter 42

Seo switched off the audio feed to the call. She reached out to Kardeni, who'd woven her hands through her hair, her eyes staring into the distance.

"Ashley was important to you, wasn't she?" Seo asked. "Who was she? A friend?"

"She wasn't real!" Kardeni insisted. "None of it was real. I spent years in therapy, trying to accept it. I've seen videos of me talking to 'Ashley', except I'm all alone, talking to myself. There was never any Ashley Victoria Stenner. She was just a figment of my imagination!"

Seo frowned. Then searched through the databank for information relating to Ashley Victoria Stenner.

All the records that had been missing for Zeera suddenly popped up — for Ashley. Right up to the moment she turned nine. Then... nothing. No records.

"She certainly seems real," Seo put in. She turned back to Kardeni. "So who was she?" She grimaced, then amended, "Who did you think she was?"

"My best friend when I was little," Kardeni said. "We were inseparable. School. Sleepovers. Holidays. We did everything together. Used to pretend we were sisters." She sucked in a sharp breath. "But, like I said — none of that actually happened. Ashley didn't exist."

The Doctor popped the top of the chair back on, and hopped down. "How'd you two meet?" He ducked down by the side of the chair, and yanked open a panel. "Or rather, what do you remember about how you two met?"

"In my parents' study," Kardeni said. "She had just found something. That's how I first remember seeing her — looking at something in her hands. She hid it from me. I never found out what." She shuddered, looking away. "The therapists had all kinds of psychoanalysis on what _that_ might mean."

Seo turned to the Doctor. "Do you think Ashley found the fob watch?"

"No," the Doctor sighed, still fiddling with the chair. "No, Seo — I don't think there ever was a fob watch." He stepped back, his eyes fixed on the chair. "Whatever happened here, it's not reversible."

"Then what did...?"

"Ashley find? Don't know. Could have been anything." The Doctor pulled a spare memory wafer out of his pocket and stuck it into the chair. "Memory wafer? Data core? Plenty of those missing from here." He tweaked a few settings on the side, then adjusted a set of capacitors. "Could even be a bit of TARDIS coral. Battle TARDISes have a bit of a reputation for altering people's minds. And this one's a bit traumatized."

"What are you talking about?" Kardeni demanded. She shook her head. "There is no Ashley. I told you. She didn't exist!"

"I said that about Twilight — a ghost that wanted to kill me and take over my body," said Seo. "But it did exist. It was real." She put a hand on Kardeni's arm, soothingly. "The Apos'alu went through that machine and became a ghost in need of a body. Maybe you did, too. You were like Twilight was to me — except you didn't know what you were doing. And you succeeded."

"This is all ludicrous!" said Kardeni, shrugging Seo off. She stepped away from them. "It's deranged." She put her hands on her chest. "I didn't kill Ashley. She never existed. And I'm not a Time Lord! It was just Andrew's stupid joke."

Seo looked between Kardeni and the Mark 12. "This is pretty elaborate for a joke."

The Doctor glanced back at Kardeni, nodding over at Seo. "She has a point."

"Andrew's jokes are always..." Kardeni began.

"No. Not that. I mean she has a point about Andrew Lantro." The Doctor turned around, locking eyes with Zeera. "Because here's the thing: whether or not you're really Bivazeer is immaterial. Biv is gone, and with no fob watch, there's no way to get him back. But that doesn't change the impact this theory has had — both on your life, and on the lives of the Time War survivors that Lantro lured into this vault and killed to keep your secret."

"You can't be..."

"Serious? You keep saying that." The Doctor brushed his fringe from his eyes. "But just because you want to pretend something's a joke doesn't make it a joke. Lantro said I wasn't the first Time War survivor to come here — that he killed the others and fed their bodies to the killer moss. I don't know if he did that to protect your identity, or if he used rumors of your Gallifreyan origin as a lure to draw in survivors and extract information about Time War weapons from them. But what I do know is — he _definitely_ wasn't joking."

Kardeni fell silent. Her face went pale.

"And then there's you." The Doctor buzzed the server with his sonic, and a series of dates hovered over the different messages sent between Lantro and Craig. The dates went back a long, long ways... back before Stenman-Hoyer... back before Zeera got married... back to when Zeera was still in undergrad.

Kardeni stumbled backwards, her eyes glued to the dates.

"This server wasn't originally here, Zeera — it was moved here," the Doctor said. "Because this has been going on for a long, long time. And because of that, we can see how things have changed."

He buzzed his sonic again.

The earliest messages popped up. Seo tapped on them.

_"...Careful. We don't want to hurt anyone..."_

_"Just find the fob watch and get it back. We can keep it locked away forever. She never needs to know about it..."_

_"I don't even care who she used to be. I just want to make sure creeps like Denoring can't ever get that close to hurting her again."_

The Doctor pointed at the messages. "Before you started working here." He gave another buzz of his sonic screwdriver. "And here's after you started working here."

Seo began tapping.

_"...blew his brains out. You shoulda seen it. The look on his face!"_

_"Nope. He didn't have the watch in the end. But you should have seen him beg for his life when we were done with him. Scared. Whimpering. Crying. We gotta get Biv to do that before we kill him."_

_"You know, funny thing is, I think the thing I'm looking forward to most right now is cutting that fucking 'Biv' down to size. Ever thought we'd be saying that?"_

"This is after you started compromising your morals," the Doctor told her. "Overlooking bad behavior. Dismissing greed and corruption and paranoia as commonplace or as some kind of joke. And look how their mission has changed."

An image popped up — a photo of Craig Kardeni and the kids with hunting rifles. There was a giant blown-up cutout of a different photo of Bivazeer — but the cutout had targets over both hearts, was riddled with bullets, and had gotten his head nearly cut off, with X's over his eyes. One of the kids had drawn blood with red marker.

'Time Lord Hunting with the family,' read the caption.

Zeera shuddered.

"This is what happens," the Doctor said, "when you decide to let things slide. When you sit there and turn a blind eye because you're benefiting financially. This is where it leads."

"But I needed the money!" Kardeni insisted. "I just wanted my kids to grow up safe — in a neighborhood without all the murders and beatings and burglaries. I wanted to give them what I never had."

The Doctor gave a long, heavy sigh, shaking his head. "You don't see it, do you?"

He buzzed his sonic again.

And brought up a series of messages dated earlier today.

_Andrew Lantro: Mutajar's a fucking Time Agent. Undercover._

_Craig Kardeni: Who?_

_Andrew Lantro: The bitch who wants the watch._

_Craig Kardeni: You mean the one I said we should kill, but you said was harmless?_

_Andrew Lantro: Don't rub it in, Craig. Wipe the M12 — temporal stuff first. Torch everything else. I'll deal with Mutajar & the Time Lord. I don't know what Mutajar's told the Agency so far. We might have to put the backup plan into place._

_Craig Kardeni: Zeera's gonna kill us for this. You got the evidence against her?_

_Andrew Lantro: Ready to go. Evidence. Lawyer. And a program in the Battle TARDIS that'll use the symbiotic link to make her look crazy as shit during the trial. She'll be fine._

_Craig Kardeni: Not guilty by way of insanity isn't fine._

_Andrew Lantro: If I go down for Galia-4, they'll look at what I did with my cut of the money and find out everything. How angry do you think your wife's gonna be then? I'm covering both our asses here._

_Craig Kardeni: Fucking Biv._

_Andrew Lantro: We'll bust her out of the loony bin when the heat's off. She'll be scared shitless but she'll be fine. Besides, the Time Lord asshole I'm with has a working TARDIS. Might make a good present for Zeera when we get her out. He won't be needing it._

_Craig Kardeni: You know, that just might work. Does he know her? Does he have the watch?_

_Andrew Lantro: Don't know. Maybe. We can search his TARDIS for it after the Ouribiu are done picking their teeth with his bones. Then I'll set it up for Zeera. I got some ideas for it that'll put the toy train to shame._

_Craig Kardeni: I swear you kill these Time War survivors just to take their shit and turn it into elaborate presents for my wife._

_Andrew Lantro: What can I say? I like to see the lady smile._

_Craig Kardeni: Seriously, Andy. She's my fucking wife. Hands off._

_Andrew Lantro: I'm locking her in an insane asylum to protect_ you _, Craig. If she knew what I know, she wouldn't be your wife._

Zeera's jaw dropped.

"And of course, when I start looking for anything dealing with time travel," the Doctor continued, buzzing again.

Everything went blank. All that was left were a bunch of stars labeled "FILE EXPUNGED", and one last star blinking away in the corner. Seo tapped on it.

_Craig Kardeni: It could be anyone?_

_Andrew Lantro: Yep. The fob watches have some kind of psychic influence. Makes people_ want _to pick them up. Doesn't have to be someone obvious. Probably isn't. Could be anyone she's met in her whole life._

_Craig Kardeni: Then we gotta go through everyone. We're gonna need guns, a time machine, and a huge stack of cash._

_Andrew Lantro: I can get the time machine, you've got the guns. How the fuck are we gonna get the cash?_

_Craig Kardeni: That's your department._

Zeera put a hand over her mouth.

She couldn't stop staring.

"Your parents told you that the Time Agency was corrupt, didn't they?" the Doctor asked. "That's why you saw no problem with Lantro's weapons-selling enterprise." He put his hands into his pockets. "But you know why they said that, don't you? Because the person beating everyone up and threatening them and killing them..."

"...was Andrew," Zeera breathed.

"Your past," said the Doctor, "is a product of your present. Lantro and your husband needed a time machine and a stack of cash. The Agency gave Lantro the time machine. But you, by working here, were the one who gave them the money."

Zeera was speechless.

"Something to think about, anyways," the Doctor said, turning back to the chair, and resuming his work.

Five minutes later, the Doctor beamed and sonicked one last panel of the chair. "Et voila!" He thumped the top, and the chair hummed with power. "Perfect. All hooked up on this side. Zeera, any...?" He paused. Stepped forwards, a bit concerned. "Zeera?"

She was sitting on the floor by herself, just staring into the distance. She didn't seem to notice that he had finished — or called her name.

The Doctor came over to her. Leaned down. "Zeera?" Waved a hand in front of her face. "Hey-ho!"

She started, as if out of a dream. "What?" Put her hand to her head. "Oh, sorry. Just thinking about..." Then shook her head, and tried to shrug it off. "Doesn't matter. What can I do?"

The Doctor offered her a hand up and pulled her to her feet. "You all right?"

"No." Kardeni sucked in a sharp breath and smoothed out her business suit. "But my problems aren't important for the moment. I said I wanted to do this. I'm going to do it."

The Doctor clapped her on the back with a grin. "Splendid. Any word from Yimi, yet, on how their side is going?"

"Hold on, I'll check." Kardeni closed her eyes and focused. "Yes. Yes, she says that she and Jenny are almost through with their part. They got into some trouble earlier, but they think they found a way around that."

"Even more splendid! Double-splendid!" The Doctor clapped a hand against the chair. "In that case — Seo?" He winked. "How about we put you back together again?"

* * *

The swarm was growing, and so was the Apos'alu's strength. It glowed like a fire within her eyes. Reverberated off her body like a vibrating tuning fork. With every new member of her swarm, her power grew more than it had before.

"Nearly time," Mutajar said. Her eyes narrowed. "Minutes, at most. After all these centuries..." A small, angry smile spread across her face. "I can hardly wait."


	43. Chapter 43

"Did it work?" Jenny asked, climbing out of the underbelly. She beamed, as she noticed a new set of displays illuminating with newfound life. "Oh, look at that! I'm cleverer than I even knew!" She did a little dance in place to celebrate.

"They say they're ready on their side," Yimi told Jenny. Her eyes were fixed on the largest holographic display — showing footage of the room with the chameleon arch. The Doctor securing Seo into the chair, speaking to her animatedly. "It won't hurt her too much, will it?"

"Probably won't hurt her at all," said Jenny, reconfiguring some of the settings on one of the far panels. "The chameleon arch doesn't really function as a chameleon arch anymore. We're just using it to put Seo back together. And since machines can actually detect her when she's in little bits and pieces like this, the chameleon arch will examine each of those bits and pieces as it reassembles her, match them against our programming here, and use them to figure out what to delete and what to keep when it reconfigures itself from a vault back into the prison it should be." Jenny ran to the next panel over, and reconfigured those settings. "But, like Dad said — that's the easy bit. The hard bit's what we get to do next. Is Zeera disconnected from the telepathic circuits yet?"

Yimi closed her eyes. Then nodded. "Disconnecting now. I suppose I should join her."

"Probably a good idea, considering what we're about to do." She noticed Yimi's unease, and put a hand on Yimi's arm. "Yimi — I promise, we _will_ save your people. One way or another, we'll make sure they're okay."

Yimi opened her eyes and met Jenny's. The worry did not leave her, but she nodded.

Jenny smiled, then spun round and ran over to the central console. "Okay." Took a deep breath, crossing her fingers. "Let's do this."

Then she threw down a lever.

* * *

The moment the lever was thrown, the Seos scattered throughout the vault began to vanish — one after the other after the other.

Then the Battle TARDIS shuddered. Its internal dimensions rumbled, as mechanisms and systems long since abandoned began to reconnect and reconfigure themselves. The dimensions began to rearrange themselves, as the basic programming of the TARDIS slowly changed.

And, as each slice of Seo was reassembled, the interior of the Battle TARDIS began to return to its previous state — as a prison.

* * *

Mutajar screamed.

Doubled over, hands on her temples. The pain! The noise!

"No! No!" Mutajar grabbed hold of the Doctor's TARDIS, clawing at the wooden panels, struggling to stabilize herself. "I can't...! I won't...!"

But she could feel the sting from the chameleon arch, just as she had so many centuries ago, when she'd nearly escaped. It was working again — pulling at her, yanking her inside out.

"The telepathic circuits," Mutajar breathed, staggering back into the Doctor's TARDIS. "They hooked the chameleon arch up to the telepathic circuits!"

She'd known they were in the room with the chameleon arch. She had known they were up to something in there. But she'd assumed they'd be far too busy using the arch to reassemble Seo or reconstruct Bivazeer's past. She should have known they'd find a way to do everything all at once.

She reached out to the two TARDISes at her command, frantically trying to disconnect her mind from the telepathic circuits. But she couldn't. She was trapped, and they were draining her away... draining her very essence into a fob watch, with nothing to replace it...

"No, don't worry, my swarm," she told the others, holding out her hands. She swallowed down the pain and focused herself. "I shall be fine. This is nothing. It will pass." She bit her tongue to stop another howl of pain. "I have already sown the seeds of their defeat. I just have to be a little more proactive in deploying those seeds — that's all."

She returned into the Doctor's TARDIS, and held her hand against the telepathic circuits.

* * *

Seo jolted in the chair.

Then, as if plunged into a world of pain, she began to scream.

"Is it supposed to be doing that?" Kardeni asked, running over to the chair. "I thought you said it wasn't going to hurt her!"

"I did say that, didn't I?" the Doctor mused. He took his hand away from the chair, revealing where he'd been fiddling with the settings. "I don't know why. After all, I configured this chair to connect to the telepathic circuits and delete anything that's vaguely Seo-like from the system. Only natural, given that she's from the Axis, and we're trying to reconfigure this place to be a prison." He shoved his hands into his pockets. "Thing is — it'll delete her, too."

"What?!" Kardeni ran over to the chair, struggling to undo the straps. "We have to get her out of there! We can't...!"

A glowing bird dove at Kardeni and she shrieked, dropping to the ground to avoid its swoop. It swerved around and landed on the Doctor's shoulder.

Kardeni looked between the Doctor and the bird. "Oh no..."

When the Doctor spoke again, his voice was mixed with Faye Mutajar's voice. "Did you really think you could defeat me a third time, Bivazeer? Did you really think your friends would be immune from my influence?"

Kardeni began to tremble, as more birds appeared around her, encircling her, their talons sharp, their feathers fiery, their intent murderous.

"Listen, you have this wrong," Kardeni insisted. "I'm not..."

She shrieked, as another bird dove for her.

"I have spent eons fantasizing about your death, Bivazeer," said the Doctor, his voice mixed with Mutajar's voice, as he returned to the chair and began to fiddle with it again. "I will hunt down and take from you everything you ever loved. Eviscerate friends and family alike. Tear apart the worlds you felt... safe..."

The Doctor stopped fiddling with the chair. Then he doubled up, hands on his head, teeth gritted.

"Get out of my head!" the Doctor shouted in his own voice.

Kardeni began to run forwards. "Doctor? Are you still...?"

But that was when the birds attacked.

* * *

"Something's wrong," Yimi said, as the ship began to shake violently. Warnings blared up on all panels, and she could see a flock of birds appear on the holographic projection where Seo, the Doctor, and Kardeni were. "Jenny, what can we...?"

Jenny threw herself at Yimi, attempting to bludgeon her with a hammer. Yimi darted out of the way, then leapt at Jenny, overpowered her, and yanked the hammer out of her hand.

One of the panels erupted into sparks.

"What have you done?!" Yimi shouted.

"Bivazeer has to be taught a lesson, Yimi," Jenny insisted, shoving Yimi off of her and jumping to her feet. "We all have to die in front of her, Yimi. Everyone has to die in front of her. That's the whole point."

She ran for the control panels.

Yimi tackled her to the ground again, head-butting her — but it didn't work. Jenny tried to claw at Yimi's eyes and Yimi yanked herself back, keeping hold of Jenny, sending them both into a roll across the floor as they struggled. They stopped rolling as they collided with the open toolbox. "Jenny, this isn't you! It's...!"

Then Yimi cried out, as she felt something try to stab into her own mind. And she was taken by the fact that it was so oddly familiar — something she'd let in more often than she knew. But now...

Where once, it had eased gently into her psyche, now, it tried to grab her mind and throttle it. She struggled to maintain control. Struggled against the foreign influence...

She heard Seo scream.

She looked up, and Jenny broke free and ran to the central console, frantically jabbing at buttons. More warnings flashed up around them, surrounding them with sirens and beeps and blares.

"No, no, it's no good! Jenny's only fixed this thing enough to fly to Galia-4 and then jammed the controls!" Jenny pounded her fist against the central console in outrage. "If I ever get my hands on that miserable progenitor-machined snot-worm again, I'll throttle Jenny to within an inch of her life!"

* * *

The Doctor kept reaching for the chameleon arch chair, then snatching back his hand as he struggled against the influence in his mind. "Have to... save..."

But every time he reached for the chair, he could feel himself beginning to reprogram it so that it'd kill Seo even faster and feed all Seo's powers and strength to the Apos'alu. He snatched his hand back again. No — he wouldn't do that. The Apos'alu with the powers of a dimensional Key! That didn't bear thinking about.

Kardeni shrieked, struggling against the flaming birds that scratched at her and tried to strike her.

Interesting that they weren't tearing her limb from limb though. The Doctor knew they could. And he knew how much the Apos'alu loathed Bivazeer...

"That's it!" the Doctor cried, raising his finger in the air. "You _can't_ kill us! Neither of us." He felt his hand back on the chameleon arch chair again, reprogramming it — and snatched it away. "You're not up to full strength yet, are you, Apos'alu?" He gestured at Seo. "This was your insurance policy. You slipped it into my head without my realizing it. But even if it kills Seo — it still drains your essence. And you still haven't figured out how to take me over long enough to stop that!"

The birds fluttered their wings angrily, but still didn't do any permanent damage to Kardeni.

"And if you kill Zeera," the Doctor continued, "it'd release a torrent of grief and pain from this TARDIS that'd knock out your psychic manipulation full-stop."

"If I'm so weak, Doctor," said Kardeni — but her voice was mixed with that of Faye Mutajar, "then why are you altering the arch's settings already, while I gain strength?"

The Doctor realized his hand was back and he yanked it away.

Kardeni laughed. Around her, the birds reluctantly stopped their attack and circled her, eyeing her up and down with barely suppressed fury. "I've already taken over Bivazeer. The Patasi traitor will not be far behind. Your plan has failed, Doctor."

"Then why am I still alive?" the Doctor challenged. "Why is Zeera still alive?" He tried to regain enough control to take a step away from the chameleon arch — but couldn't quite manage it. "You're hooked into the telepathic circuits of both the Battle TARDIS and my own TARDIS, Apos'alu. Using the symbiotic nuclei, it'd be no great feat to take over my mind or Zeera's mind. You're bluffing."

The birds squawked. One dove at him, a second swiping at him with its beak, a third scratching at his chest. The Doctor tried to move to duck their advances, but couldn't. His skin burned beneath their fiery feathers.

He realized he was back to reprogramming the chair and yanked his hand away, shoving it behind his back and praying it would stay there.

"All you're doing by resisting, Doctor, is ensuring that Seo dies," Kardeni said with the voice of the Apos'alu. "And the chameleon arch won't drain my essence unless someone's strapped into that seat. So the choice is yours — submit to me and your companion lives. Resist, and she dies."


	44. Chapter 44

In the Battle TARDIS, Yimi finally stopped writhing. She dropped her hands from her head.

When she got up from the floor and walked over to Jenny, there was a hollow listlessness in her movements and an emptiness inside her eyes. "I am ready to serve," she said in a monotone. "What must I do?"

"About time you came back," Jenny snapped. "I mean — it sucks that I can't have you fawning at my feet anymore, but hollow and empty is better than nothing." She tried twisting a few knobs on the central console and throwing a few switches. Then she gave a shriek of frustration and kicked the console. "Useless thing! Why won't you work?!" She grabbed one of the screens and swung it around. "'Error on final syntax pineapple requiring deference to fishing hook'?! How the hell is anyone supposed to be able to program this stupid thing?!"

"I have had the Zeera woman in my mind, Your Holiness," said Yimi, flatly, as she began adjusting knobs and levers. "I have learned much about how this machine works."

"Oh, you have, have you? Maybe I should have taken _you_ over directly, instead of doing it to these Time Lords." Jenny squeezed her eyes shut, like she was concentrating. Then let out an irritated sigh. "No. It's no good. I can't get control of you without releasing a fraction of my control over the Doctor — and he's just waiting for that split second when I let my guard down."

Yimi ceremonially opened her arms and turned out her palms, the rose colored feathers within shimmering in the lights. "What must I do?"

"Find a way to get Jenny into the vault, for a start!" Jenny shouted. "She may be irritating, but her mind's a lot less slippery than the Doctor's or Bivazeer's. I need someone I can fully control in there. Someone who won't fight back!"

Yimi didn't move. She looked confused. "I don't know what you want me to do, my Lord."

"No, I get that. Think, think, think...!" Jenny's eyes lit up. "Oh, that's interesting. Jenny's trying to hide something from me. She knows how to get me into the vault." Her eyes narrowed, she smiled as she ran around to the far side of the console. "And now I know it, too. Of course! Bivazeer told Jenny that she had some sort of lifeline she could use to drag Lantro out of there. And I can read in Bivazeer's mind that Lantro originally programmed it for her, because it was getting harder and harder to pull her out of the vault. That means it can be altered. Maybe even locked onto someone else." She began frantically flipping switches and pulling levers, but the TARDIS just gave an irritated whine and flashed up an error message on the screen. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" She thudded a fist down on the console. "I am going to kill the person who came up with that stupid Oxford Gallifreyan dictionary!"

"These are the controls, my Lord?" Yimi asked, approaching.

"Yes, yes, over here." Jenny gestured at them in disgust. "Jenny's sure they are. They look just like the ones in that room in the Main Complex on Galia-4. All I need you to do is invert it, lock it onto Jenny, then shove her inside the vault. Then I can kill the Doctor and Bivazeer and use Jenny to carry out the real work." She sneered, crossing her arms. "And when I'm done, I'll withdraw my mind from her body and let this TARDIS reconfigure its prison around her, instead. That'll show her."

"Yes," said Yimi, reaching for something she'd tucked inside her pocket earlier. "I will get right to it, my Lord. Right at..."

Without warning, she spun on her heels and leapt at Jenny, yanking the hammer out of her pocket and slamming it down on the top of Jenny's head. The girl slumped to the ground, unconscious.

"You forget, Apos'alu," Yimi told the TARDIS — just in case the Apos'alu could hear. "Unlike these others — I know you. I've felt you inside my mind countless times. That's why it's easier for me to throw you out."

The ship shook again.

Yimi sucked in a sharp breath. "Jenny made her part tamper-proof," she reminded herself, letting go of the hammer and grabbing something else from the toolkit. "That means there's only one place I need to be."

She turned back to the console, pressing a few buttons and flipping a few switches. Took a deep breath.

And with one final push of a button, she vanished.

* * *

The Doctor gritted his teeth as he felt the assault ramp up on his mind yet again. No wonder Rassilon had wanted this thing! Even with a human body and after eons of being weakened and restrained, he was using all he had inside him to fight her influence — and felt his control slipping away.

A flash of light burst through the room, and the Doctor winced, shielding his eyes. The birds swiveled their heads round to look — and then squawked in irritation as Yimi stepped out of the light, fire extinguisher in hand. They dove at her, and she directed the nozzle at them and sprayed.

The birds were vexed by the foam — but the steel determination and focus inside Yimi's eyes made them shudder. They fell back, looked at one another...

Then flew off, disappearing from the room as fast as they had appeared.

"How...?" the Doctor asked, looking between Yimi and the birds.

Kardeni leapt at Yimi, then cried out and fell to her knees, hands clutching her head. "Get it out of my mind!" she shouted. "I can't get it out!"

The Doctor just kept staring at Yimi, completely gob smacked. "That's impossible! How did you...?"

"What was it you told me, Doctor?" Yimi said. "The Apos'alu was born on a world destroyed by chaos and by your war. Its powers were the results of evolving in the wake of the destruction brought on by your own weapons." She reached down and unstrapped Seo from the machine. "And it struck me that my people and I have spent thousands of years digging up those same weapons. Our genetics have been changed by their effects as, draft after draft, we have been culled and nearly wiped out so that we might evolve and change and become stronger. The Apos'alu thought of us as nothing. The humans thought of us as slaves. But I know we can be so much more." She lifted Seo out of the machine and set her down gently on the floor. "I can be so much more."

Seo slumped on the ground, her face pale, her eyes closed, as she gasped for air.

Yimi took Seo's place inside the chair.

The Doctor grabbed her by the arm. His teeth were gritted, as the Apos'alu redoubled her attack on his mind to counter Yimi's effect. "Don't," he said. "You're not the Apos'alu, Yimi. You might have scared off her swarm, but that doesn't mean you can defeat her mental powers."

Yimi gave him a sad smile, and removed his hand from her arm. "I know." She strapped herself into the machine. "I'm not as strong as the Apos'alu, nor am I brave as Seo, nor clever as Jenny, nor as effective a killer as Zeera. But we can only drain the Apos'alu while someone is hooked up to the chameleon arch — and I'm ready."

"If this works — and there's no guarantee it will," the Doctor warned, "it will kill you. This chair isn't fitted to your biology. And considering how broken it is already...!"

"I've watched too many others take a bullet for me and my people already," said Yimi. "When Seo met me, I was ready to kill for the sake of my people. Now — I'm ready to die for them." She met the Doctor's eyes with her own. "Allow me to do this, Doctor. I'm ready."

The Doctor, slowly, moved his hand towards the controls to the chameleon arch. He could just about summon the will to press the button and restart the process — but any doubt, any hesitation, and the Apos'alu would swoop in and twist that against him, leaving him petrified.

"Please, Doctor," Yimi said.

He closed his eyes and pressed the button.

Yimi jolted as a surge of electricity ran through her. She gritted her teeth, her eyes focused, but another surge of power ripped a scream from her throat. Slowly, her form began to flicker inside the chair like a candle, then melt like wax.

Seo, from the ground, managed to open her eyes enough to see what was happening. "No. Yimi, don't..."

It was Seo's words that finally made that last resolve slip from the Doctor's mind. He slammed his hand down on the cancel button, praying he wasn't too late. He tried to turn round and release Yimi from the chameleon arch — but that final doubt had spread a thick fog through his mind, and he couldn't keep it out any longer. And even as the Doctor struggled and fought to regain control of himself, he could already feel the Apos'alu taking over and making him completely alter the chameleon arch's programming.

By the time he was done, the Doctor knew, the Apos'alu wouldn't just be free. She'd be more powerful than ever before.

* * *

Yimi groaned as she blinked her eyes open. Her whole body ached. Her vision swam as she examined the area around herself — the interior of the Doctor's TARDIS.

Yimi frowned, managing to put aside her aches and pains enough to get to her feet. She looked around herself. Interesting. It wasn't completely unlike the last console room she'd been in — except this one felt warmer, somehow — and hummed with a lot less viciousness and a lot more peacefulness than the other. She found herself almost smiling as she stepped towards the central console, reaching out to it.

"Last time I save someone," came the voice of the Apos'alu.

Yimi turned, but found herself backhanded across the room. Tried to get up, but was immediately kicked down again. The Apos'alu was strong. Fast. Deadly.

"You really had me going there, didn't you?" the Apos'alu said, grabbing her by the neck and throwing her against the wall. "With your sweet eyes and your 'you owe the Doctor something' shtick. Can't believe I fell for it. I blame this hateful human body and its disgusting empathetic emotions."

She dropped Yimi to the ground. Yimi's feathers were already strewn with blood. Her arms and legs were trembling. She would not meet the Apos'alu's eyes.

"I..." Yimi looked around again. "I thought I was..."

"Dying?" The Apos'alu laughed bitterly. "You're about to be." She kicked her again. "Congratulations on sacrificing yourself for nothing, Yimi. Your plan's about to get snuffed out — and so are you."


	45. Chapter 45

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last few chapters are really, really long. It just seemed like such a shame to break up the action here.
> 
> And yes, we are on the last few chapters.

Jenny opened her eyes.

She had a splitting headache. Where was she? What was happening? Why had she just blacked out like...?

"You call that fighting back?" came the Apos'alu's voice from the central console. There was a grunt of exertion from Yimi, followed by another smack and Yimi's cry of pain. "Come on! Put some backbone into it! I thought your people were supposed to be bloodthirsty."

Jenny jumped to her feet. "Yimi?" She ran to the central console, eyes on the scanner screens. "Oh." Rubbed her head. "Oh, that must be why the Apos'alu is out of my head. Yimi's blocked the Apos'alu's influence from effecting the inside of this TARDIS."

She cringed. Poor Yimi... All this, for...

"The plan!" Jenny ran around the central console, looking for the controls she needed. "Right. Next time I get brainwashed — spend less time cleverly making it tamper-proof. More time actually finishing it." She found the correct controls, and began frantically pushing buttons and flipping switches. The TARDIS beeped a snippy error message at her in fractured Gallifreyan. "Oh, you have to be kidding me!" She flipped the switch the other way and slammed down a lever. The TARDIS gave her a groan that might have been a snicker, and a snippier error message.

"'Stop grammaphoning the orange peel; apply variable parmesan'?!" Jenny thudded a fist down on the console in irritation. "I'm trying to save everyone's lives here! Zeera's included! Can't you cut me a break?"

The only sound from the central console was a smack of skin hitting feathers and a grunt of pain from Yimi.

Jenny threaded her hands through her hair. "No, Jenny, don't freak out. People are depending on you. Especially Yimi." Oh, but why couldn't she have grabbed that Oxford Gallifreyan dictionary before she'd left room 78B?! Who in their right mind would know...?

Wait.

Room 78B. Lantro's lifeline.

Jenny could feel new memories flashing inside her head, left over from when the Apos'alu had taken her over. "The lifeline. It wasn't set up for Lantro, at first. It was for Zeera. It was designed to grab onto Zeera!" She dove for the controls, inverting what Yimi had done. "The lifeline was modified to lock onto Lantro's vortex manipulator instead — but I can switch it back. Pull her out one last time! And with everything destabilized, it should work." She adjusted a knob, and then yanked up a lever. "She can be my dictionary! She knows...!"

Jenny hesitated, as she suddenly thought of one part of the plan Zeera really, really wouldn't like.

From the central console, the Apos'alu's voice rang through the punches and smacks and grunts. "Here's the thing, Yimi. The Doctor's back under my control. And you might have saved Seo in the short run, but I'm going to make sure the Doctor drains every last scrap of power out of her before I let him go."

"On second thought..." Jenny slammed down the button.

With a flash, Kardeni suddenly appeared in the center of the room. She spun around, dazed. "What? But I...!" She blinked, then rubbed her head. "It's gone." Her eyes lit up, excitement flooding through her. "I can't believe it! Finally, it's...!"

"I know! I know!" Jenny ran over, grabbed her by the arm, and tugged her back over to the central console. "And we'll throw a party later! But right now, I need to make sure everybody doesn't die." She kicked the central console, scowling. "And without Yimi, I can't figure out your faux-Gallifreyan setup well enough to program in the tablecloth part."

Kardeni blinked, then seemed to come to her senses. "Oh. The tablecloth." She began to run around the central console. "Why are you having trouble with the tablecloth? The tablecloth should be easy." She began flipping switches around the console as she ran, each flicked carefully timed and precise. "One up, one down, three middle. First vault layer secured." She kept racing around the console. "Second vault layer. Up. Down. Middle-middle-middle. Secured. Third vault layer..."

There was the sound of another punch.

"What is that punching sound in the...?" Kardeni grabbed a scanner screen and slid it towards her. Skimmed her eyes up and down it. "Oh." Cringed. "Oh, poor Yimi." She got back to her work. "I guess we need to save her people, then."

Jenny used the distraction to slip away from Kardeni and dart over to the third row of consoles. She still had to program in the part she knew Kardeni wasn't going to like. She was just hoping she knew how to do it.

On the holographic projection, the Doctor had already stopped the chameleon arch from draining the Apos'alu and had already pried off the back of it, reconfiguring the machine to undo what Bivazeer had done all those centuries ago — and increase her power tenfold.

"Tenth layer," Kardeni continued, still running around the console, speeding up now, a smile lighting up her face. "Eleventh layer. Twelfth layer!" She paused, then glanced up at Jenny. "We do have a place to put all these, right?"

"Taking care of it!" Jenny insisted. She made a shooing gesture with her hands. "You do the tablecloth thing. I'll give you a call if I need help."

Kardeni hesitated. "Jenny, about this place you're sending..."

From the console came another pained groan from Yimi and a cruel laugh from the Apos'alu. "Is that what you call a punch? How sweet. But you can't save cute little Seo, any more than the Doctor can stop my plans for Bivazeer." Her voice dropped. "I'm going to hunt down all her kids, her friends, her husband — and make her watch as I skewer their eyeballs and..."

"Never mind!" Kardeni threw up her arms in the air, spinning round and running to the second console. "Anywhere is great. Let's do anywhere. Nothing wrong with anywhere." She shook her head and altered one of the settings that Jenny had set earlier. "No, no, no. Double conjugation for present tense, Jenny. Otherwise, it doesn't mean anything." She ran over to a keyboard and began typing in a series of settings. "First conjugation for relative present tense. Then a noun to anchor the relativity. Second conjugation to define the..."

"Can we save the grammar lessons for after we save everyone and seal up the prison?" Jenny snapped, struggling to program things correctly on the third console. "Some of us have to concentrate. And learning impossible Gallifreyan grammar rules..."

"They're not impossible — they're easy," Kardeni dismissed, fixing several more errors in Jenny's code. "I made my kids learn it before they learned to tie their shoelaces. You can sing the rules to the tune of 'Baby Shark'." She finished inputting the code, checked it over, made one last tweak, and shoved down a lever. "There. Vault layers secured."

"So that's the plates and cutlery taken care of," Jenny muttered, struggling to remember the Gallifreyan computer codes she needed to finish this off. She was seriously considering just yanking off the paneling and rewiring it by hand. "I've got the destination. Kind of."

Kardeni mimed the symbol Jenny wanted in the air, mouthing the Gallifreyan word at her.

"Oh, right." Jenny tapped in the code she needed, the rest of it rolling off the fingers with ease. "Table was programmed in ahead of time. I'd have thought it'd be here by now."

"I'll double check," Kardeni offered, leaping over to the other side of the 3rd console. She tapped each spot on the console where a button should have been pressed, then matched it against the display. "You know, Jenny — all grammar nitpicking aside — you're _really_ good at this."

Jenny looked up, surprised. "What?"

"Gallifreyan is a fiendishly difficult language to learn," said Kardeni. "I mean, my kids can sing the song and tell you all the rules, but that's about it. You — well, once you learn the song, you've got most of the rest down solid." She pat the console affectionately. "And when it comes to programming this TARDIS...!" She laughed. "Let's just say you're not doing too badly."

Jenny looked down at the console and returned to her work. "Thanks."

"I mean it. You should have seen the others!" Kardeni imitated Stenman's big frame. "Mr. Stenman." She made her eyes go wide and terrified, then ventured a ginger poke at the console before yanking back her hand and saying in a scared voice, "Zeera! Help!" She laughed again. "Mr. Hoyer used to just shove down all the buttons at random to see if anything happened. At some point, the console started electrifying him to keep him away. And Andrew..." She paused, then glanced back at Jenny, her laughter dying away into concern. "Where is Andrew, by the way? We're not — are we leaving him there?"

"I'm sure we won't," said Jenny — who had absolutely no idea, but wasn't going to shed any tears or anything if they did.

"I mean, I'm furious at him," said Kardeni. "Don't get me wrong. But..." She sucked in a sharp breath. "I don't know. He's been so important to me for so long. I just want him safe."

Jenny couldn't help but think Kardeni should take a little bit of advice from Branden — _just keep in mind that you've got yourself a bad group of friends, and the next time they drag you into something, you may not be able to get out of it._

But she didn't say that.

"We'll save everyone, even him," Jenny said, instead. "I mean, assuming that the table part actually starts working..."

As if on cue, a wheezing, groaning sound echoed through the console room and a gust of wind blew back Jenny and Kardeni's hair. A blue police box faded into and out of existence at the far end of the room, its doors open.

Faye Mutajar's body lay lifeless on the floor of the other TARDIS.

"I didn't think she'd look like that," said Kardeni, her voice trembling. She swallowed, hard. "I feel almost sad for her."

The sound of a punch, a cry of pain, and harsh laughter cut Kardeni off. From the central console, the Apos'alu's voice echoed out, "And then, just as her first kid is screaming, then I'll turn to the second one and tear the wretch's vocal chords...!"

"And — sadness gone," said Kardeni.

Around them, the console room and the entire Battle TARDIS seemed to come alive in the presence of the Doctor's TARDIS. Systems that had been offline for millennia came back online. The dull lighting of the console room flared into a warmer, more energetic lighting.

Kardeni spun around in wonder. "This is just...!" She ran to the central console, adoration and enthusiasm running through her as she watched the ship revive around her. "Beautiful. Perfect. Like the day Anna was born. Or Sam. Or..." Her enthusiasm suddenly dropped, as she stroked the central console lovingly and realized — this would be the last time she was ever here.

This wasn't hello. It was goodbye.

"Are you going to be all right?" Jenny asked, coming over to her.

Kardeni blinked. "What? Oh, yes. Fine." She gave the console one last affectionate pat, then made a few adjustments. "Hand me the Re-Partitioner, would you? Tool kit, third row, second to the back slot." She threw down the dematerialization lever, feeling the ship roar into life around her, her smile so wide and so sad as the Battle TARDIS sang its joy inside her mind.

"The most beautiful thing in the universe," Kardeni whispered, "and I have to let it go..."

Kardeni closed her eyes, sucked in a sharp breath.

Then forced the thought out of her mind.

"Table's on its way," Kardeni said, getting back to work. "Cutlery and plates are locked down. Let's just check on the tablecloth really quick..." Kardeni adjusted a few knobs and switches. Squinted at the display screen. "Chameleon arch data fully integrated. Vault configuration de-authorized. Prison configuration re-initializing. Swarm still on the surface of Galia-4 — exactly where we want them. The moment we materialize around them, they'll be trapped." She stroked the console again, her hands caressing every button and lever upon its surface. "And this ship will disappear — and all of Galia-4 — will disappear forever."

Jenny looked up from where she was knelt down beside the toolbox. "Uh, Zeera...?"

Kardeni turned, and Jenny shoved the toolbox forwards.

The place where the Re-Partitioner should be was empty.

"What?" Kardeni ran to the toolbox and rooted around inside it, frantically. "No, it can't be. It must have just been misplaced. Who else would...?" Then she froze, thinking about what she'd found out about Lantro and her own past. "The Re-Partitioner. It can be used to partition any data anywhere, to make sure no one can ever find it." She shuddered, as she realized she knew exactly who had taken it. "Andrew. He must have stolen it and taken it with him to cover up my past." She jumped to her feet and ran back to the central console, frantically pulling up different holographic screens of the vault worlds. "We have to find him. He might still have it on him."

"In the twenty seconds it'll take to materialize?!" Jenny leapt to her feet and grabbed Kardeni by the arm, forcing her away from the controls. "We don't have time for this, Zeera! We've got to do the tablecloth thing. Otherwise, the moment we materialize, everyone's going to get stuck inside a prison we're yanking out of the universe!"

"If we don't partition the Apos'alu, she'll take over the TARDIS!" Kardeni insisted. "She'll undo everything. Gain powers she never even dreamt of. Cause untold slaughter and misery for countless races out there."

"Sounds like it's right up your street, then," Jenny snapped. "And Lantro's." She pointed at the central console. "Yimi died so we could save her people, Zeera! Do you really want all of that to be... in...?"

Jenny trailed off, as a laugh came up from the console.

It wasn't the Apos'alu's.

It was Yimi's.

"What?" said the Apos'alu. "Don't laugh." She slammed down another punch. "I'm beating you to death. There's nothing funny about that."

"You still think we're in the Doctor's TARDIS, don't you?" came Yimi's voice. "You think you've won."

"I _have_ won," said the Apos'alu, pointedly. "And we _are_ in the Doctor's TARDIS. I mean, look around us."

"I don't need to look," said Yimi. "I know where we are. I can feel it, running through every fiber of my being. I can manipulate it."

A hundred screens around them suddenly blazed with red warning lights and roared with the blare of sirens and alarms, as the whole Battle TARDIS shuddered.

"No, no, no, no!" Kardeni grabbed at one of the screens. "Oh, God, what is she doing?!"

"It's funny — you never know what kind of mental influences you're born with inside your mind," said Yimi. "Your species was linked to Nitvenah. My species was linked to a TARDIS — myself more strongly than most. And that's why I can feel where we are: uploaded and stored inside that very TARDIS. And you know, a TARDIS seems so complicated and confusing out there; but it seems really quite simple in here."

"She knew," Jenny breathed. "Somehow, Yimi knew the tool we needed was missing. She knew we'd have to choose between saving her people and destroying the Apos'alu."

"She's deleting the link between ship and pilot!" Kardeni cried. "She's deleting...!" She yelped, doubling over, her hands on her head, sorrow and deep pain on her face. "It burns!"

"She's giving us the seconds we need." Jenny sprang forwards, attacking the central console. "Vault layers secured — plates. Materialization imminent — table. All beings inside the vault that aren't supposed to be imprisoned..." Jenny grabbed a final lever. "The tablecloth."

She yanked the lever.

The entire TARDIS convulsed around them, and Kardeni almost collapsed. Tears were streaming down her face.

"Because that's the thing — I've now seen inside both Zeera Kardeni's mind, and this TARDIS' mind," said Yimi. "She only knew where all these weapons were because the ship called out to her. And who's to say she doesn't come back and do it again? And again? And again? Well, I say no more. No more Bivazeer returning. No more Apos'alu nearly escaping. No more weapons. No more mining."

The Apos'alu screamed.

Reality twisted and bent around Jenny and Zeera like a piece of cloth, as Jenny struggled to remain upright for long enough to flip down the last few switches and flip them to their destination.

Kardeni looked up at Jenny, as if the loss had only just begun to crash down on top of her. Tears streamed down her cheeks. "Please," she begged in a whisper. "It's all I have left."

"Goodbye Zeera — or Bivazeer, or whoever you are," came Yimi's voice. "Goodbye, Apos'alu. And — Jenny?" In a softer voice. "Tell Iporil I love him. And tell Seo I'm sorry."

"Goodbye, Yimi," said Jenny, as she flipped the final switch. "I wish I'd known you better."

And she and Zeera Kardeni vanished from the console room, as all the lights went dark — the reconfiguration finished — and Yimi, the Apos'alu, and the telepathic link between Zeera and the ship were all deleted.

Gone forever.

* * *

All across the surface of Galia-4, reality shifted and wobbled. Stenman tried to grab onto something, but found the only thing he could hold was a fellow employee. Iporil, Yimi's little brother, who'd been smashing his way through computer equipment on the second floor, yelped and tried to dive for cover — but found himself crashing through the floor. And Branden, groaning awake for the first time since he was stunned by staser fire, lunged for the earthquake alarm — but cried out as his hand ghosted right through it.

Above them, the sky went dark and a wind whipped up from nowhere, as a wheezing groan encompassed the planet.

But just before the materialization was complete, Branden, Iporil, Stenman, and all the others were whipped out from the rest of the planet — like a tablecloth yanked suddenly off a table without disturbing anything above or below it — and shoved somewhere else.

Stenman, Branden, and all the other human employees looked around themselves, utterly bewildered. They appeared to be back at the main complex — except that it looked completely empty and vacant.

In a separate location, Iporil and his fellow Patasi looked around themselves, surprised, as they found themselves back in their village, with everything pristine and new-looking.

And in yet another location, a group of badger-beaver children scurried around, utterly bewildered, as they found themselves back in the home they assumed they had lost.

* * *

Jenny put her arms around Kardeni, who was sobbing as if she had no more tears to shed. Jenny could feel her shaking. It was clear — when Kardeni had agreed to all this, she had no idea what she'd really been giving up. One final connection between herself and Bivazeer — gone forever.

"I'm sorry," Jenny whispered to her. "I'm so sorry." She pat her on the back and gave a long sigh. "But I'm afraid it's about to get worse."

The stomp of boots.

A shadow fell across Kardeni and Jenny.

"Who the hell are you," demanded the Director of the Time Agency, "and how the hell did you break into the most secure facility in the whole universe?!"

Kardeni stiffened with sudden fear, as she realized where she was. Jenny just kept a tight grip on her — in case she wanted to make a run for it. She shot the Director her most winning smile. "Hello, again! Sorry we dropped in unexpectedly like this. It's just, well, we were sort of invited."

A wheezing groan echoed through the building, as a blue box materialized behind Jenny.

"Isn't that right, Dad?" Jenny asked, without looking back.

"Quite right!" the Doctor announced, strolling out of the TARDIS door with a grin on his face. He grabbed the Time Agency Director by the hand and shook it firmly. "Hello, Director. Sorry we didn't stick around earlier. Busy day, really. You know how it is — exposing corrupt Time Agents, fighting ancient monsters, saving sentient species that aren't supposed to exist."

The Director's jaw fell open. "What?!"

"That woman over there — Zeera Kardeni," the Doctor said, nodding at her. "She's the one with all the info. I'm sure she'll be happy to tell you everything and cooperate in any way possible, in exchange for a lighter sentence." He leaned in a whispered, "Sick husband. Eight kids. Bit of a sticky situation there."

"No, wait, you said exposing corrupt...!" the Director began.

One of the Time Agency employees came running up, breathlessly. "Director, sir. Galia-4 has completely disappeared. I mean, it's just gone! No survivors, no ships, no...!"

Another Time Agency employee came running from the other direction, equally breathlessly. "Director, sir. All our temporal vaults are full. I mean _all_ of them. And I think — I mean, it sounds crazy — but I'm pretty sure one of them is just full of Plate Crackers from Galia-4. And another's just full of incriminating documents."

Kardeni wiped the tears from her eyes and stood up. "Edmund Hoyer, real name Eddy Watkins of the Agency's top ten illegal time tech smugglers, is still on the loose. I can give you precise details of his whereabouts, the illegal wares he's selling, and the Mafia family he's meeting with. But I want a plea deal and a lawyer first." She slumped, as she found herself escorted away. "Then, I'll tell you everything."

The Director began to go after her, but the Doctor grabbed him by the sleeve and tugged him back.

"One more thing, before you go." The Doctor glanced back through the doors to the inside of his console room, where two dead bodies lay on the floor. "I didn't want to leave them both behind, seeing as Galia-4 was about to disappear and all, and you'd probably need them for your investigation. Just..." He shoved his hands into his pockets, his eyes fixed on the body of Andrew Lantro. "Break the news gently to Mrs. Kardeni, would you? It's been a difficult day for her."


	46. Chapter 46

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, very long, but it seemed like such a shame to chop it up. After this chapter, there's one more chapter to wrap up the story, and then we're done! I was thinking of adding an extra chapter on at the end that's sort of a behind the scenes sneak peak. See, in the next chapter, you get a tiny little snippet of a much longer report. Well, I wrote a lot more of that report than I wound up using. It isn't anywhere near as polished as this story (in fact, it's pretty rough because it's background), but I thought it might be interesting.
> 
> If I do include it, I'll probably chop it up a little because a lot of it recaps what was already said here, and I was writing it out in report form to better understand the legal side of time travel crime and how it would be investigated and/or charged.
> 
> I found Kardeni to be a very interesting character. I feel like there's more to explore with her. Perhaps I'll stick her in another story.

Several hours later, after a good deal of interviews and explanations had been conducted, the Doctor and Jenny were in the break room having a cup of tea. They looked up as the door opened, and the Director of the Time Agency walked inside.

He looked very shaken.

"You'll be happy to know that we got Mr. Watkins — or Hoyer, as you know him," the Director informed them both. "He and Mr. Stenman are now in custody and speaking to their counsel. In light of all the evidence against them, we expect guilty pleas." He folded his hands on the table. "In terms of Galia-4, we've checked and there's no trace of it — nor Galia-3. There isn't even a gravity dent left over."

"And the vaults?" Jenny checked.

"Are up and running," the Director told them. "Everyone is alive — confused, but alive. We don't really know what to do with them, to be honest. If you know how the Apos'alu managed to allow them all to coexist with each other in the same space-time continuum..."

"A function of the Battle TARDIS we ejected, unfortunately," the Doctor explained.

The Director grimaced. "I was afraid of that."

"So there really is no way for them to leave the vaults, then?" Jenny asked the Doctor. She cringed. "I assumed you'd be able to do something clever."

"Yimi's people could just about manage it — since they're the latest iteration," the Doctor replied. "But... no. No clever ways out of this. Each species is a different temporal fold of the same piece of space-time. It is physically impossible for them to coexist in the same universe."

"Exactly our problem," the Director confirmed. "We've found the Patasi a home world already. But as for the others, well, it's tricky." He paused. Then, in a quiet voice, added, "I'm sorry about your loss, by the way. Miss Yimi sounds like an incredible person. What she did for the people of Galia-4 — it's remarkable. She deserves a hero's burial."

"I'm sure the Patasi are very glad to hear how important she was," Jenny said.

The Director cringed. "Actually, if I were you, I wouldn't bring up her name around the Patasi. There's a bit of an internal politics thing going on there, at the moment. I believe they've branded her a traitor and are burning her in effigy."

Jenny's jaw dropped.

"Just — if that other friend of yours, the injured one, asks to visit the Patasi," the Director advised, "tell her they've built a beautiful memorial and don't get her within 500 lightyears of the place. Trust me. Bad idea."

"Noted," the Doctor said. "And... Mrs. Kardeni?"

The Director bowed his head. "Ah, yes. Mrs. Kardeni. I knew you'd ask about her sooner or later."

For a long time, no one spoke.

Jenny and the Doctor exchanged a look. They both knew this was a bad sign.

"Mrs. Kardeni is in a _lot_ of trouble," the Director said, at last. "And I honestly don't think even you can dig her out of it."

"But the plea deal...!" Jenny insisted.

"The more we look into this whole 'fob watch' business, the worse it seems to be," the Director explained. "We're still trying to retrieve the expunged data from the Mark 12 you gave us — but there's already enough there to establish Mr. Craig Kardeni as the primary suspect in multiple murders, arsons, and burglaries — including that of Mrs. Kardeni's parents. His children may have been involved as well. It isn't clear. What I can tell you is that Mr. Kardeni has already been here to see his wife, and he is certainly prepared to use the potential criminality of their children against her."

The Doctor said nothing.

"We'll see what our investigation finds," said the Director, "but I suspect this is going to get very ugly very quickly. Mr. Kardeni isn't going down without a fight." He looked between Jenny and the Doctor. "And I haven't even started on the evidence mounting against Mrs. Kardeni's other close friends and acquaintances. A lot of people are in on this, Doctor. They'll protect Mr. Kardeni and blame Mrs. Kardeni just to save their own necks."

Jenny and the Doctor looked at each other.

"I can't say more at the moment," said the Director, "except to warn you to lay low for a bit. One of the last things Agent Lantro did before he died was to issue Craig Kardeni with a full description of you, your TARDIS, and its temporal signature. And before you brush that off — Mrs. Kardeni has admitted that she not only knows how to break into a TARDIS, but once gave Lantro a set of written instructions on it. We're fairly certain that information was passed on."

"Oh my God," Jenny said. She shook her head. "Are you serious?"

The Director nodded. "If you would like protection or relocation, we can arrange..."

"No, no, no — none of that nonsense," the Doctor dismissed with the wave of his hand. "If I had to change my identity every time someone wanted to kill me, I'd never get anything done. I probably wouldn't even know who I was half the time!"

The Director spread open his hands. "Just — if you change your mind, the offer's always open. Well, long as I'm director, anyways." He glanced up at the clock. "Which, to be honest, is another three hours and thirty-one minutes. Handed in my resignation notice earlier today."

Jenny stared at him. "You're resigning? But...!"

"Plate Cracking is a hot button political issue right now," said the Director. "And Agent Lantro clearly used his position at the Agency for corrupt and criminal purposes. This investigation's only just opened, and we're already getting reporters knocking down our doors. We're going to get raked through the coals for this. Me most of all. This is what I have to do."

Jenny cringed. This hadn't turned out anything like what she'd expected.

"But we're free to go?" the Doctor checked.

The Director gave a wry smile. "Doctor, from what I've read in your file, it wouldn't matter if you were free to go or not. If you want to go, you'll go. Laws and investigations be damned."

The Doctor grinned.

Jenny rolled her eyes and elbowed him in the side.

"So I'm assuming, since you've stuck around this long," said the Director, "that you want us to do something for you. The boys have been taking bets on what it could be."

The Doctor shot him a strange look, but gave a small shrug. "All right, then. I was hoping to have a quick word with Mrs. Kardeni."

The Director grumbled. "Hang on." He walked to the door, opened it, and shouted, "Mubbins! You got it. Everyone pay up." Turned back to the Doctor. "Sure you don't want something named after Yimi of the Olingi? I got ten bucks that says you do."

Jenny grinned. "Ooh! Dad! You should ask for that. That sounds way better."

"I'll stick with the chat, if it's all the same to you," the Doctor decided, getting up. "Where is she?"

* * *

"I was hoping it'd be you," Kardeni said as she slid into the seat across from the Doctor. They were separated by a wobbly stretch of air that was the 53rd century's space-time bending version of bulletproof glass. She clasped her hands on the table before her. "I wanted to ask you to do something for me. A favor."

"Depends what it is," the Doctor said. "Probably can pencil it into my calendar."

Kardeni looked around herself. Swallowed hard. Then leaned forwards and whispered, "Open it."

"Open...?" The Doctor stared at her. A wave of sadness washed over him. "Oh, Zeera..."

"Doctor, I'm desperate, here," Kardeni insisted. "Craig told me he brought the children along with him when he went into my past. I don't know what they did. I don't know what the investigators are going to find. All I know is — I'm not able to handle this. I need to be Bivazeer to save my children." She leaned in a little further. "So don't be nice and pretend you don't have it. I know you do. Just do it. Open it."

The Doctor sighed, leaning in towards her. "Zeera — I _don't_ have it. It doesn't exist."

"Then... then... prove that I'm not Bivazeer," Kardeni decided. She put her hands against her chest. "Prove I'm Ashley. That's who I really am, right? A multiple-personality of Ashley's that went rogue and took over? So prove that. If there's no watch, prove to the world that I'm _not_ a Time Lord, and that the only thing that ruined my past was my own insanity."

The Doctor sighed. "Zeera..."

"Don't just sit there feeling sorry for me!" Kardeni snapped at him. "Do you know how many people were threatened, tortured, beat up, or killed over this? Do you know how many of my friends and family are implicated in this? Do you know how many times I've helped Andrew lure unsuspecting survivors to Galia-4, just so he could shoot them down and hand me their stuff as some kind of trophy? Do you have any idea how sick that makes me feel?" She slammed her hands down on the table. "What was it all for, Doctor? If there was no watch, what did it all mean?! Why did it all happen?!"

The Doctor didn't know what to say.

"If everyone I know is going to jail — I just want it to have been for a reason," Kardeni said, practically begging him. "Please. Tell me you have the watch. Tell me it exists. Tell me there was some kind of point to this all."

The Doctor ran a hand down his face. "I think your friends and family would say they were protecting you. And clearly, Professor Denoring and others really _did_ intend you harm." He rested his elbows on the table. "But you were never in the kind of danger they seemed to believe. And the level of hatred, fury, and malevolence they felt by the end..." He opened his empty hands in front of her. "Some things defy rational explanation."

"But..." Kardeni ran her hands through her hair, sucking in a sharp breath. "You said yourself that you couldn't tell when the watch-writer burnt out on the chameleon arch. There might be a watch. There might have been a point to all this."

"Oh, well, sure," the Doctor agreed. "If that's your sole criteria, then yes, there might be a watch." He leaned back in his chair, arms crossed. "I mean, it'd be empty. But it might exist."

"Empty?"

The Doctor threw open his hands. "Empty! Blank! Magician bunny-in-hat trick sans bunny!" He pointed at her. " _You're_ proof of that."

Kardeni shook her head, confused.

"You're sort of..." the Doctor tried to mime doing a Rubik's Cube that was in seventeen dimensions, but didn't do a very good job. He abandoned the mime and dropped his hands. "You could see me past my regenerations. You could hear Biv's TARDIS inside your head. And you certainly shouldn't have been able to feel what you did when Yimi wiped Biv's symbiotic nuclei from his TARDIS. It's just not possible with a human brain."

"It felt like I was strangling someone to death," said Kardeni. "And I looked into her face and found out she was me."

"Exactly," said the Doctor. "But your medical scans..."

"...say 100% human." Kardeni put her hand on her heart. "One heart. Normal body temperature. No regenerations."

"And that's what I mean," the Doctor said. "You're sort of all... jumbled up. Bits of Bivazeer. Bits of Zeera." He folded his hands on the tabletop. "So no. There's no watch. No way back. Well, no way except the obvious — stay off those nasty, nasty drugs." He made a face. "Vile things. Probably did a lot more than just cutting your connection to the TARDIS. Let's just hope it's not permanent."

"So you're saying that my family is going to jail," said Kardeni, staring into the distance, sadly, "over nothing. Protecting me from an evil boogieman 'Biv' who was in a watch that never existed."

"Sorry. But — yep. Looks like it." The Doctor tapped his hands on the table, watching her get more and more distressed and not sure what to say to get her to feel better. Before he realized it, he'd already started rambling, "They warn you in the manual not to use the chameleon arch when it's damaged. But I've never heard of anyone actually doing it. Just that propaganda back during the War, warning that if you used one to hide from your duty, it could turn you purple and backwards..."

"...like a Farxoloth who'd had his nose clipped," Kardeni muttered. "I remember."

The Doctor blinked. "You do?"

"Twenty foot tall posters," Kardeni said, her face bent into a frown, "in big, neon colors, with a horrible mutated Time Lord in the middle and a glaring Rassilon in the corner." She closed her eyes, miming the placement of text. "'Chameleon Arching is a Victory for the Daleks. Do Your Duty!' I don't know if they ever convinced anybody but they scared the pants off me."

The Doctor regarded her curiously. "You remembered all that?"

"It just came to me, out of the blue," Kardeni said, hand on her head. Her eyes opened wide. "Oh, God, lots of things are coming to me. All at once. Like an overload." She pointed at the Doctor. "That song they taught in basic. The marching one. You remember how everyone used to snicker when we got to the part about 'Time marches on the boots of war?' I remember telling... oh, what was his name?... Mandazar! That's it. I remember telling Mandazar that Rassilon could boost the morale of the troops tenfold by hiring a better poet."

The Doctor gave her a small smile. "Mandazar. The short bloke."

"Short? You must have met him when you were in a tall incarnation," Kardeni said, waving her hand. "No, he was tall. Broad shoulders. Kind of dirty blondish hair with the start of a mustache on his upper lip. We talked together all through basic. Got in trouble over it, too. A lot of trouble."

"Yes! Sorry," the Doctor said, hitting himself on the head as if he'd somehow forgotten. "Tall. Definitely tall." He was grinning ear-to-ear now.

"And the Academy!" Kardeni said, her eyes bright. "Oh, God, how could I have forgotten about the Academy? So many long, boring lessons. I must have fallen asleep a thousand times."

"You remember your Academy nickname?" the Doctor asked.

Kardeni shook her head. "No. Not yet. Maybe that's coming next. But — yes. Yes! I remember sneaking this book out of the Panopticon." She laughed. "I got caught at the entryway and had to stuff the book down my collar. And then there was that time when Mandazar and I found a canoe and went..."

Kardeni stopped in mid-sentence.

Her enthusiasm melted away into a horrible, bottomless well of sadness, and she looked away.

"No," she muttered. "No, I can't do it. I thought I could, but I can't." She scooted out her chair. "I'm sorry."

The Doctor held out a hand. "No! Wait! What's...?"

"I made it up, Doctor," Kardeni told him, standing up. She couldn't meet his eyes. "My parents studied you guys. I studied you guys. I know enough to bluff you. I know what you need to hear to get your hopes up." She ran her hands down her face. "Mandazar's just some dead guy my parents wrote a paper about. I've seen his photo. I doubt he even knew Biv." She glanced at him and cringed. "I just thought — if I could _make_ you believe I was Biv, you'd bust me out of here. Then I could steal your TARDIS and..."

For a moment, she let the possibility dangle in midair.

Then she turned away.

"Never mind," she said. "It was a stupid idea to begin with."

The Doctor jumped to his feet. "Zeera!" He banged on the divider between them, making it vibrate and send out a loud WUMF noise. "Zeera! Wait!"

Kardeni stopped in place. Hesitated, glancing back at him.

"How much of it was a lie?" the Doctor asked — because, to be honest, he had to know. It'd just keep gnawing at him if he didn't.

Kardeni shook her head, unable to hear him. Came back a bit closer. "How much was pie?"

"How much of it was a lie," the Doctor repeated. "Where did you start making it up? With the propaganda posters? With that thing about the SeaBurc? With your telepathic connection to the Battle TARDIS? Or all the way back when you said you recognized...?"

"I don't know. Probably all of it."

" _All_ of it?"

"Or most of it or... I don't know!" Kardeni slumped down in her chair. "My head is so screwed up right now. I don't know who I am or what I've done or what I might have hinted at someone to do that they took literally for some reason. One moment, I could swear I remember my parents speaking Gallifreyan to me, and the next, I'm sure I must have made that up as some kind of lame excuse for having known it. I just...!"

She leaned over, hands around her head.

The Doctor nodded, slowly. He supposed it was only natural, considering all that had happened to her today.

"And then I thought, what would Andrew advise me to do, if he were here? And I know what he'd say. 'Lie, cheat, steal — anything you have to, Zeera, just so long as it lets you get back to Craig and the kids. It isn't murder if it's self-defense.' So I thought..." She trailed off, her eyes losing focus. Then, almost as a sigh, she whispered, "But he's dead now..."

The Doctor looked down at his hands on the table.

"I've lost so many people, Doctor," Kardeni explained to him. "First Ashley, then my parents, now Andrew... and every time Craig gets sick, I..."

She fell silent for a few long seconds, pain etched across her face as she thought about what she'd learned about Craig.

Then she looked up and met the Doctor's eyes.

"We leave so much stuff unsaid," she said, at last. "We never think we'll have to say it. We always think there'll be another time..." Shook her head. "But there isn't, Doctor. You can't tell me all the stuff you wished you'd said to Bivazeer — any more than I can tell you all the stuff I wished I'd said to Andrew. To make you think I was Biv, to give you that chance when I knew it was all a lie... I couldn't do it. It wouldn't have been fair to you."

The Doctor stared at her. Then gave a hint of a smile.

"You know, you're a remarkable person, Zeera Kardeni," the Doctor put in. "Sort of wish I could have gotten to know you back before all this Galia-4 business."

"Really? I don't."

The Doctor cringed. That stung a bit.

"No — not like that," Kardeni insisted. "I just mean — don't go back into my past. My life's screwed up enough as is. The last thing I need is another time traveler making a mess of things." She paused. Then, softly, added, "Besides, I think my family wants you dead."

The Doctor grinned and waved that off. "Few death threats never did me any harm. As I keep telling Jenny — some of my best friends have tried to kill me at some point or other."

"Jenny..." Kardeni's eyes lit up. "The song!" She fumbled around, and found the pen and paper she'd brought in. Began scribbling something down as fast as possible. "I know it's not much — but I thought it might help." She handed it to one of the security guards, who took it off for examination — before it could be passed on to the Doctor. "I was so looking forward to teaching it to her in person. I always hoped my children would take an interest in these things. I never understood why they didn't." She dropped her eyes to the ground, as she added, in a soft voice, "Although I guess I understand a bit better now..." Then, with a bitter laugh, "I guess this is what I deserve. I mean, I knew I was going to Hell — I just expected it to start after I died."

"Don't say that," the Doctor protested. "This isn't the end for you. You can make a new start."

"Are you just saying that?"

The Doctor leaned in. "Zeera, when I asked you to give up your TARDIS to save the people of Galia-4, you said yes. You said so long as it saved the species in the vault, you'd give up anything. That was _before_ you knew what Lantro and your husband did to your past. _Before_ you believed they'd killed people over this. You chose to give up something precious to you, simply because you knew it was the right thing."

"Yimi gave up her life willingly," Kardeni argued. "I gave up my TARDIS reluctantly. And at the end, I begged Jenny to reverse it." She fidgeted with her hands. "No, Doctor. I'm not a victim — not like Yimi or Branden. I did this to myself. I knew it was illegal. I knew it was immoral. And I did it anyways." She stared off into the distance, her eyes sad. "I was born to backstab. First thing I ever did was kill Ashley. And she was my best friend. The very best."

"Zeera..."

"Your companions are a good judge of character, Doctor," Kardeni cut in. "Jenny trusted Branden. Seo trusted Yimi." She scooted out her chair. "Follow their example. Don't trust me."

"I _want_ to help you," the Doctor said. "You don't realize..."

"I wish I could have been Bivazeer," said Kardeni, getting up. "I would have liked being a Time Lord. I guess I'll have to make due with getting all the Time Lord drugged out of me so that I'm back to being Ashley. At least that way, she'll get her life back. I'll feel good about that."

"Zeera," the Doctor said, also getting up, "what you said earlier about Mandazar..."

"...was a lie," Kardeni said, turning away. "And a bad one. I was just rambling — I didn't think about if any of it made sense." She walked towards the door out. "Look it up, Doctor. Mandazar went through basic _after_ the Battle of Nitvenah. So he and Biv _can't_ have met each other in basic. The dates don't match."

She turned around and began to walk out.

"The dates don't have to match," the Doctor called after her, banging on the divider. "Because Mandazar was...!"

Kardeni didn't turn back.

Just left.

"...your brother," the Doctor sighed.

* * *

"I guess we'll have to tell Seo about Yimi," Jenny said, as they headed back into the TARDIS. She grimaced. "She is not going to be happy. You know how Seo gets when she decides she wants to protect someone."

"Yimi made her choice — and it will make a difference," the Doctor said, opening the double doors and ushering Jenny inside. "It's like I was saying back when we first landed, Jenny — everything changes after Galia-4. Nothing like this will ever happen again. And that's because of Yimi." The Doctor ran up to the central console, rubbing his hands together. "Right! Back to the real work." He began flipping switches and pulling levers. "First thing the investigators will have done is lock down her whole timeline while they try to sort out what happened." He raced around the console, pushing buttons as he went. "Temporal barrier. Impossible to get through." Stopped long enough to pull out a knob and adjust the zigzag plotter. "Well, not if you're clever." Threw a lever. "Well, not if you're me."

The TARDIS wheezed and groaned into life.

Jenny shot the Doctor a dark look. "Dad — she's had too many people running through her past as it is. Let it go."

The Doctor ignored her, as he kept working.

"Dad," said Jenny, a little louder.

The Doctor didn't look up at her, just flicked three switches. "I have to." He checked the scanner screen, then adjusted a knob. "When Biv and I were running away from the Daleks — that was the first time he admitted that he knew the encryption code. He made some crack about 'good thing we won't make it out of this alive'. And then he was shot, and I just thought... maybe it's better this way. I don't remember if I checked."

Jenny walked over to the central console. "What? That he was dead?" She leaned against it. "Wow," she said flatly. "I am so surprised. That is so unlike anything you've done since."

The Doctor looked up at her, surprised.

Jenny waved at him. "Messaline?"

"Oh, you were fine!" the Doctor said, fiddling with the controls. "Better than fine! Are you still going on about that?" He ran to the other side of the console and adjusted a series of switches, checking the scanner screen. "This isn't anything like that. What's the worst that ever happened to you? Nothing!"

"Uh..." Jenny said.

The Doctor raced past her to the next set of controls on the console. "I left Biv behind." He frantically began to fiddle with them. "Thought he was dead. Then, the moment I find her again — I ruin her life. Destroy her ship."

Jenny dropped her head down. "Why do I even bother?"

"She'll let her husband shut her up in an asylum, just so she can save her kids," the Doctor said, as he wound up a crank and began pushing a series of buttons. "He'll make sure they drug every last shred of Time Lord right out of her. And I'm starting to suspect there's a lot more of Biv in her than either of us know."

"Yeah — I'm done with this, now," Jenny decided, heading past the console and towards the far doors. "You destroy Zeera's life a little more if you want. I'm going to make sure Seo's okay and not randomly tearing apart the universe again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jenny's backstory (in my universe) can be found in more detail in the Jenny Trilogy ("The Totos and the Vanguard", "Green-Eyed Monster," and "Butterflies"). Most of the backstory is in "Butterflies" but that story picks up from the end of the previous story in the trilogy, so I wanted to give you the names of all 3.


	47. Chapter 47

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the end! Let me know if you're interested in hearing a little more of that report. I may add another chapter for that. But this is the official end of the story.
> 
> Thank you for reading! I'll have to write the next story now.

The Doctor's letter arrived the next day.

At first, Zeera Kardeni didn't want to open it. In fact, she considered throwing it in the trash and pretending she'd never gotten anything. But eventually, curiosity got the better of her, and she opened it.

Two photos fell out.

For a moment she could only stare. One was of herself and her parents — when she was back in middle school. The other was of her when she was so much younger, alongside her two parents and a very familiar little girl in a matching dress.

"But that's...!" Zeera blinked. Rubbed her eyes. She had to be hallucinating, didn't she? Ashley wasn't real. She was sure Ashley wasn't real.

But there she was.

That was when Zeera finally took out the letter. It was dated three weeks before her parents died.

And finally, she understood the truth.

* * *

Dear Zeera,

I don't know when you'll receive this letter. The truth is, your father and I hoped never to have to write it. But we have run into a man who claims to be your friend, who has told us it is very important. So we decided to take his advice and write it all down. Where our knowledge is lacking, he has agreed to help us by explaining things a bit better.

When your father and I accepted faculty positions at Fruyan University, we and our only daughter, Ashley Victoria Stenner, moved to Liron-2 and made a life for ourselves. Due to frequent excursions and research trips, we had to leave Ashley at home with a baby sitter and she often complained of being lonely.

We found you, Zeera, on one of our research trips. While investigating a ruined Time Lord bunker from a battle field, we discovered a teleport signal suspended inside the cache data of one of the teleport pads. The data had been downloaded, but the pad had glitched and never recreated the person. We fixed it, of course — and there you were, just a child. You were so confused, so scared, so alone. We spoke to you in our garbled Gallifreyan. You didn't say much, but it was clear you had no one. Nothing. What else could we do but open our arms and our hearts to you and take you into our home?

Your friend is very adamant that we mention, here, that within the next few hours of our finding you, you became deathly ill and very nearly died. I'll allow him to explain.

_Hello, Doctor here! Sorry to barge in on your parents' letter, but they wanted me to explain this bit. Far as I can tell based on your parents' descriptions, you were suffering regeneration sickness. At a guess, Bivazeer regenerated half-way through the transformation process. When Time Lords regenerate, we usually expel the extra energy over the next day or so. Because you were human, you couldn't do this._

_As a result, your regeneration sickness appears to have come in two major waves over a period of about a year. Both times, you became physically ill and very nearly died before your body finally found a way to expel the energy._

_I remember hearing, back on Gallifrey in my younger days, that when a Time Lord isn't able to expel the extra energy for a period of several months, it can cause confusion, hallucinations, and the resurgence of old trauma from previous lives. It was said that the moment the energy was expelled, these symptoms went away._

After you recovered from your illness, you seemed to shut yourself off from everyone. We were told it was some sort of post-traumatic stress. You barely ate. Didn't want to talk. And although your physiology was completely human, your dreams were plagued by memories of death and war and traumas no child should ever have to deal with. We tried our best to comfort you with our garbled, fractured Gallifreyan. But it didn't help.

Ashley changed all that. The moment she saw you, she knew you would be best friends. She called you her sister. Brought you through the worst of your trauma. You began talking. You began laughing. You became just a normal little girl. You even began to believe that the war was just a bad dream.

And then people started showing up on our doorstep, looking for a fob watch.

We never knew why they wanted it or what its importance was, but we knew that no such thing existed. When we informed them of that fact, they grew increasingly enraged and violent. They began threatening our safety, breaking into our university offices, ransacking our data files. We've always wondered if it was our faults for not taking them seriously or for shrugging off the importance of this supposed fob watch. But then Ashley died.

Poor little Ashley.

We've never forgotten her. She was such a treasure. Such a beautiful burst of goodness in a world filled with troubles. Not a day goes by when I don't think of her.

Ashley's death was hard on all of us — but I think it hit you the hardest. You had already been growing quite ill again. I believe your friend described it best in the section above. Of course, we didn't know about regeneration illness or the consequences of failing to dissipate the energy in a timely way. We didn't know what was happening to you. All we knew was what we saw.

We began to catch you talking to yourself and answering back like you were Ashley. When we took you to her graveside, you simply refused to believe that she was dead. You claimed she was right beside you. You began to behave more and more erratically. Your memories of her began to blend with memories from some former life, and it was as though you lost all sense of reality. You began digging up the graveyard because you believed that Ashley had regenerated and was trapped underground. The next day, you forgot about the graveyard and seemed to believe she was captured by Daleks. You told us horrible stories of Ashley suffering in Dalek torture camps. Some days, you knew she was gone and wanted to find her. Others, you believed she was there and spoke to yourself as if you were her. We found you about to skewer your own forehead, one day, because you had to get the Dalek nanogenes out of Ashley's head.

After that, we took you to the hospital. They treated you the best way they knew how. I know how much you hated their medicines. Then you began getting physically ill. Your father and I were awoken at three in the morning as they were rushing you into the emergency room with a high fever. We dropped everything and ran to the hospital. You very nearly died. But you pulled through.

After that, you appeared to be doing much better. Your father and I thought you were fully recovered, but the psychiatrists believed you still heard voices. We were a little ashamed to admit this all to your friend, but it seems he guessed most of it without us. I think perhaps he can explain it best.

_Me, again! Yes, this appears to be a mistranslation error. You can blame the Oxford Gallifreyan to Standard Galactic dictionary._

_You knew there was some strange singing inside your head. Didn't know what or why. But you knew the Gallifreyan word for it. So you asked about it._

_I looked up the Gallifreyan term for 'singing sound the TARDIS makes inside your head' in that dictionary. Their definition is 'voices inside your head that tell you to do insane and irrational things'. They'd guessed the meaning based on a very silly Gallifreyan fairytale about an evil TARDIS. It's entirely incorrect._

_In reality, the singing sound of a TARDIS actually improves mental health, rather than hindering it._

In the meantime, the violence and threats were growing worse and worse. Your father was kidnapped and tortured for information about the watch. I was held at gunpoint and nearly shot. And we both worried that — if this was happening to us, what might happen to you?

_Time for another little aside. It appears that these fob watch hunters actually managed to draw so much attention to you, Zeera, that they inadvertently attracted some really nasty regeneration eaters. Your parents acted very bravely and managed to send them away and save your life._

Your father and I didn't know what to do. Since one of the fob watch hunters was a Time Agent, we dared not contact the authorities. We debated what to do for a long time, but the regeneration eaters finally made us realize that, for your sake, we needed to take drastic action.

I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Both to you and to Ashley.

We altered every record we could find to make it look like you and Ashley were the same person. We convinced all our friends to stay quiet about the truth — and then moved to a new neighborhood where we could pretend there never was an Ashley. That entire period of your regeneration recovery had grown distorted inside your memory, and Ashley's death had become strongly associated with the trauma of war. Gradually, with the help of some very good therapists and some drugs that we know you didn't like much, you were able to get past both the trauma of Ashley's death and the trauma of war.

Your friend has told us the truth about what these drugs were doing to you. We had no idea. We were told, over and over again, that if you didn't continue to take the medication, you would quickly relapse. We cannot express how sorry we are. We have already thrown out the rest of your medication and agreed that you never have to take it again.

_Just wanted to add that although your brain scans as human, the TARDIS link and the regenerative energy wound up making your brain a bit more Time Lordy than it really should be. I gave a few tips about medications._

Well, for a while, our gamble appeared to have worked. Everyone assumed you were our natural born daughter. No one asked about any fob watches. We felt that you were safe.

And then, very suddenly, it all fell apart.

The fob watch hunters returned. Some were new. Some — the Time Agent included — were the same as when you were young. They demanded we turn over the fob watch to them. They shouted at us. Threatened us. We kept insisting to them that there was no fob watch, but they wouldn't listen.

The violence began again. We watched, in horror, as the people who knew you were threatened, killed, kidnapped, or burglarized. We watched as buildings were torched, records deleted, and our research torn to shreds. When our university was bombed, your father and I knew it was time to flee.

We left in the middle of the night. I'm sure you remember. I believe we told you something about how we got a discount for leaving at an odd time and carrying no luggage. You complained, of course. It was only natural, considering how we kept moving from planet to planet, never staying put for longer than a month or two. But it wasn't all bad. I was telling your friend earlier how you used to correct the Gallifreyan in our academic papers, and all the enthusiasm you had when we let you accompany us on our field excursions. We had some hard times, but we had some good times, too.

_Doctor here, again! Your mum has been telling me many wonderful stories about you. In the midst of all this, I asked about that paper you mentioned on Mandazar._

_The paper's not actually about Mandazar, is it? He gets a brief mention. That's all. Your mum said they included that mention for you. She said you'd been moved to tears when you read the fragments of his journal. You wanted to make sure Mandazar was never forgotten._

_Your parents, by the way, have no idea what Mandazar looked like. Or how tall he was._

_There was never any photo._

Eventually, we managed to get in touch with Jules, who had enough connections to allow us to hide here on Earth. And while your father and I miss the old academic life of tenured professors, we enjoy our work at the Lantern Archive very much and we love seeing your reaction to every new addition we get. After you have suffered with so much pain and trauma, it is such a pleasure to see you able to research and learn about the beautiful side of the Time Lords without any possibility of trauma.

Hopefully, by the time you receive this letter, it will be redundant. We are, of course, planning to tell you all of this in person. We always have been. We are simply trying to find the right time.

If you want to know the truth about who you are — or who you were — and where you came from, neither your father or I know for sure. Your friend, who asked us to write this letter, appears to know far more, so I advise you to speak to him. He has assured us that this letter will arrive in the correct hands at the proper time. For some reason, I really do believe him.

Your father wants me to stress how much we love you and how much our lives have been blessed because you are with us. And although we miss Ashley very much, we cannot imagine our lives without you and we thank the Lord every day that we found you. Remember that if you ever get into trouble, our arms are always open and our home is always yours.

With much love,

Mom and Dad

P.S. We have been asked to include a photo with this letter. We have attached two of our favorites — one of the three of us at the middle school, and that photo of that picnic on the banks of the Grand Canal, back when Ashley was still alive. Looking at you and Ashley together brings tears to my eyes. You both looked so cute in your little matching dresses.

* * *

_Dear Zeera,_

_Well, seems I've been arrested by the Time Agency for having a cup of tea and a chat with your parents. They searched me for 'temporal contraband' on the way in. Good thing my pockets have secrets! I thought I'd just dash off this letter, since I'm in the right timezone anyways._

_Your parents are lovely! And they make a mean pot of tea. Brilliant, both of them. And very brave._

_I just wanted to add a few additional things. The first is that, when I asked them for photos, your mother brought out a biscuit tin full of paper photos (the digitals, she said, kept getting Re-Partitionered) that she wanted me to give to you. I'm leaving them for you in a special Time Lord container that will only unseal when the correct person is holding it. That way, I know they'll be safe._

_Second, and more importantly, listening to your parents' discussions, I'm guessing your parents knew who these 'fob watch hunters' really were. I'm not convinced your parents ever really 'decided' to pretend you and Ashley were the same person, nor did they ever 'decide' to keep your origins a secret. They were clearly being threatened. Probably by your husband._

_Also — quick side note, not sure if this helps — but your husband seems unusually preoccupied and disturbed by the fact that you used to be a bloke. And that you were a Time Lord. But mostly the bloke thing._

_So, all in all, sorry I got involved again when you asked me not to. I just thought..._

[Letter abruptly stops and is later continued using a different color pen.]

_Sorry about that interruption. Also sorry for the bullet holes now present in your letter. Seems the Time Agency was right about people wanting to kill me. I believe I've just met your daughter Anna!_

_Anna also apologizes for putting bullet holes in your letter. She and I had a bit of a chat. And some tea. And maybe an adventure or two. Or five. Probably more like five. This is all part of a sort of plan-thing I came up with to save your children. So expect a lot more stories of adventures in the near-future!_

_At any rate, to get back to what I was saying before — sorry I got involved when you asked me not to. I just thought you might feel a bit better knowing the truth. You're not mad. Your parents really did speak Gallifreyan to you when you were young. Ashley was a real person. Everything you told me was true. Even the things you thought you made up! I met Mandazar. Your description was spot-on. So were your anecdotes. None of them were taken from your parents' research._

_I'll swing by again to see you after I take Anna home. I found a Polaroid of Biv and Mandazar and thought you might want me to do some explaining._

_Oh, I think Anna wants to write a few words. Enjoy the photos!_

_The Doctor_

* * *

Hi Mom,

Sorry I shot your letter. Also, sorry I tried to kill your friend. He seems kind of cool with it though. So that's weird.

We went to a bunch of places and had adventures and stuff. It was pretty awesome. I kind of get why you like Time Lords so much. I'm not really sure why Dad was so convinced the Doctor was gonna kill you, but I'm pretty sure he's not. The Doctor actually seems kind of worried about you.

So get out of jail soon. And I'm sorry I burned down your house and threatened all your friends when you were a kid. Also, I borrowed a hundred credits from your wallet one time to buy some weed.

Anna Kardeni.

* * *

EXCERPT FROM THE REPORT ON THE INVESTIGATION INTO THE GALIA-4 PLATE CRACKING INCIDENT:

_Volume II, Section II: The Investigation into Criminal Charges Incurred during the Hunt for Mrs. Zeera Kardeni's Fob Watch_

_Prosecution and Declination Decisions for Temporal Crimes_

...Pursuant to our investigation's conclusion that Mr. Craig Kardeni was the instigator of the temporal crime to obtain the fob watch, additional indictments were brought against Mr. Craig Kardeni on November 30, 5276 for trans-temporal conspiracy, acquisition of illegal temporal equipment for the purposes of committing trans-temporal conspiracy, illegal temporal tampering, criminal conspiracy to time travel illegally with intent to commit violence, and the attempted temporal rewrite of Mrs. Zeera Kardeni's timeline.

These were added to the previous indictments of Craig Kardeni for non-temporal criminal violations explained earlier in the report, which included multiple instances of homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, kidnapping, violence, conspiracy, etc.

In addition, Craig Kardeni repeatedly lied to investigators about the extent of his illness, which he considers part of his 'alibi'. Our investigation has found no evidence of his illness confining him to the house or even hindering his ability to commit acts of extreme violence — as was made clear during his three separate attempts on the Doctor's life during the course of this investigation (see .G.5).

[...]

Regarding the legal action that Craig Kardeni has undertaken against his wife in an attempt to declare her mentally incompetent, our investigation has uncovered no evidence to support his accusation. In fact, our investigation into this aspect of Craig Kardeni and Andrew Lantro's conspiracy has uncovered an elaborate set-up to exonerate themselves while blaming much of their actions on Zeera Kardeni. This was further complicated by an ongoing love affair between Zeera Kardeni and Andrew Lantro, the latter of whom planned to double-cross Craig Kardeni the moment the watch was destroyed and run off with Zeera Kardeni (see Appendix I).

[...]

In terms of the Kardeni children, after great deliberation, we have decided not to recommend any further prosecutions. Likewise, we have decided not to recommend foster care for any of them. Our reasoning for this decision will become apparent below.

Likewise, our investigation recommends no prosecution of the Doctor — although he should be advised, in the strictest possible terms, that crossing a temporal quarantine is a criminal violation that normally incurs the full penalty of the law. And, no, there is no exception for "but it was just a cup of tea and some photos!"

The Doctor has proven a surprising element in this investigation. Initial concerns about his safety turned to outrage over his blatant violation of the temporal quarantine, then to alarm and even panic as he goaded the Kardeni children into attacking him. Yet somehow, every time one of the Kardeni children attacked him, the child would return quite changed, reformed, and even repentant. The arsenal located within the Kardeni household (see II.i.M.5) has now been completely dismantled and handed over to the authorities, and it has become clear that the children — unlike their father — have learned their lesson and no longer pose any danger to either society or to the Doctor in particular. In fact, they seem particularly fond of the Doctor. The youngest now believes the Doctor is Santa Claus, and the reason he brings her presents when it isn't Christmas is because his calendar is upside down.

In addition, the Doctor has been a tremendous help in locating and disabling all the Time War technology unearthed and sold by Stenman-Hoyer Co. In addition, he has somehow managed to bring a complete halt to the sale of black market TARDISes and has hauled in eight of the Agency's ten most wanted temporal criminals. There were many concerns about a conflict of interest, considering his clear desire to help Zeera Kardeni, and considering the clear feelings of her friends and family that they want him dead. Perhaps because of these two conflicting motives, the Doctor has proven a remarkably reliable source of information for the investigators — if a rather flighty and easily distractible one.

In terms of Mrs. Kardeni's friends and acquaintances who were also involved in the conspiracy […]

* * *

_Thank you for sending a copy of the report. Dad insists he will read it in 'just a bit', when the snot monster of Valhidron finally gets tired of dangling him head-first over a vat of boiling acid and decides to 'give up and go to sleep'._

_Give Zeera and the kids our love! And tell Craig Kardeni that while we are always happy to catch up with him, we would greatly prefer if he left the semi-automatic behind._

_— Jenny_

_P.S. Seo here! Any chance you can send another copy of the report? Or, if not another full copy, just the bits with the exposition? I think some people are sort of mad at me._

* * *

The End

* * *

Second Author's Note: If this is your first story of mine (and if you enjoyed it), I'd recommend reading the following (I'm recommending mostly shorter stories here, by the way):

"A Scooby of Her Own" - Again, mostly independent characters. But it's a fun, snarky, and action-packed story in which Seo gets a new friend and saves a bunch of kids!

"Paradox: AKA Annoying and Destructive" - Please read the 2018 version of this story. I rewrote this story after a long hiatus, so it reintroduces, explains and summarizes many of the things in later stories, but does so more succinctly. It has very few of my own characters.

"88719" - this story is a mystery that just keeps turning and turning as you read. Little problems quickly escalate into big problems, and Torchwood scrambles to figure out what is going on.

"The Most Dangerous Alien You'll Ever Meet" - Another Torchwood story with Buffy and Seo. When I reread the series after my long hiatus, I was surprised by how much I loved this story.

"Headless Monks Armed With" - It's the battle of Demon's Run. Just told from a very weird perspective.

There are a lot of stories in here, by the way, that are fantastic... particularly the Jenny trilogy... but I'm trying to stick to stories where you don't need to read the whole series. A lot of the really wonderful stories here are part of the larger story arc. The Jenny trilogy stories all tie into one another and do eventually tie back into the larger story arc. If you're interested in reading a whole story arc, it's best to start with the beginning of a "season", as explained in more detail in my profile.

"Un-Minority Report" - it starts with an MIT piano drop and quickly turns into a Jenny adventure!

"Mirror Vision" - this is one of my absolute favorite stories, so I would be remiss if I didn't recommend it. It's lie Romeo and Juliet except with smart people and Juliet can kick people's butts. However, it does reference the story immediately before it a lot.

That should get you started!


End file.
